2021-07-BRE MM

embership M

07 TWENTY TWENTY ONE

MATTERS

G et money back...

Take advantage of Smart Rebates!

You can get money back from Blue Ridge Energy’s Smart Rebates program when you purchase one of the following qualifying EnergyStar® appliances or home projects! These help reduce your electricity usage, which helps you save on your monthly bill for years to come.

Appliances ENERGY STAR Refrigerator (min. 15 cu. ft.) $25 ENERGY STAR Freezer (min. 10 cu. ft.) $25 High Efficiency Heat Pump or Mini-Split (16 SEER or greater)* $150 Geothermal Heat Pump (19 SEER or greater)* $250 Weatherization Duct Sealing or Replacement Air Sealing* Insulation* Building an ENERGY STAR home*

up up up up

to to to to

$100 $100 $100 $500

*Indicates items for which you may also be eligible for a federal EnergyStar tax credit in addition to the Blue Ridge Energy rebate.

Smart Rebates is a Blue Ridge Energy member benefit initiative to help members save money through energy efficiency.

Rebate forms and complete details are available at BlueRidgeEnergy.com/Rebates.

Energy efficiency improvements you make in your home can lower your monthly energy bill, providing cost savings on your energy bill for years to come. Why not consider making an energy efficiency purchase now and maximize the savings with Blue Ridge Energy’s Smart REBATE offers!

Blue Ridge-0721.indd 17

6/9/21 3:56 PM

THE

Perspective Recognizing T he Blue Ridge Family

From Blue Ridge CEO Doug Johnson

At Blue Ridge Energy, we often call our employees the “Blue Ridge family.” Family is a fitting word to describe the people who work here. Each day, this group displays a tremendous passion for their job and heart for service and dedication to our members.

Seeing this drive from our employees is something that I am very proud of. Being a cooperative is special and it takes a special group of people that work each and every day to support our mission to make life better for the members we serve.

After many years of service, we are anticipating a sizeable amount of workforce retirements in the coming years.

Recruiting talent to Blue Ridge is a top priority in making sure that we continue making life better and Powering a Brighter Future for our membership. As these retirements approach, we recognize that this award from Business North Carolina, along with other efforts, will help attract more people to our culture, business model and this corner of the state to work at Blue Ridge.

I’m honored that our Blue Ridge Energy family has once again been recognized by Business North Carolina magazine as one of the top employers in the state. This is Blue Ridge Energy’s fifth time to receive this recognition, which is based on workplace policies, business philosophy, systems and employee culture, involvement in local communities, and best employer practices to recruit and retain top talent.

While it’s challenging to replace the quality of people leaving Blue Ridge Energy in the coming years and the decades of knowledge acquired in their roles, I’m optimistic about our future and ability to continue providing the very best service. We are proud to have been named one of the top employers in the state of North Carolina and we look forward to serving you, our members, as an organization you can be proud of for years to come.

Blue Ridge Energy, like many organizations, faces challenges in the years ahead. Our cooperative has long been led by an excellent group of people from a wealth of backgrounds, working to serve our members and push the cooperative forward as a leader in the business, economic and community landscape of northwest North Carolina.

Page 18

Blue Ridge-0721.indd 18

P C M C O R

Membership MAT TERS

6/9/21 3:56 PM

Ridge hnson

Members receive notice of capital credits allocations

Capital c redits: allocations vs ref unds During the month of July, members will receive notice of capital credits allocations from the previous year. This notice will come on the back of your July billing statement, or via direct notification for FlexPay members who do not receive statements. Please be aware this is NOT a refund — refunds were issued in May. Here’s more about the difference between capital credits allocations and refunds: • Allocations are based on the amount of electricity a member purchased the previous fiscal year. This annual allocation amount is added to your overall membership capital credits balance, which reflects all the years in which you had service with Blue Ridge Energy.

• Refunds occur when your Board of Directors approve a capital credits retirement. This involves refunding a portion of your overall membership capital credits balance. The rotation of these funds over time allows the cooperative to build and maintain power lines, substations, rights of way, and other areas to ensure safe and reliable electric service. It also reduces the need for loans, which keep costs down for members while still allowing for refunds to the member-owners of Blue Ridge Energy.

Capital credits are a benefit of belonging to a cooperative. This not-for-profit business model is used by thousands of cooperatives to balance debt and equity to help keep member rates low and provide reliable electric service.

Your annual capital credits allocation notice communicated in July is NOT a refund, but rather one of the first steps in the annual process. Refunds were issued in May.

Planting in Right-of-Way A reas Planting new trees can be one of the best ways to accent your property and add beauty to the landscape around your home. Before taking a trip to the plant nursery, it’s important to consider the location of power lines and right-of-way areas.

Included below are plant and tree suggestions that are low-growing. While they’re safe to plant around rights-of-way, we encourage you to call 811 at least three days before digging for your safety. Keep these tips and guidelines in mind to assure that the balance of beauty and electric reliability is maintained for years to come.

What is a Right-of-Way? Blue Ridge Energy is one of the top performers in the nation when it comes to keeping the lights on, with a 99.98 percent reliability rating. An important aspect of this rating involves managing the tree and large shrub growths within our power line rights-of-way.

It is imperative that these power line “avenues,” ranging from 30 feet (15 feet on each side of the power line) for our distribution power lines to as much as a 250-foot corridor for our large transmission lines, remain clear.

Plants to consider: Shadblow Serviceberry, American Hornbeam, Eastern Redbud, Fringetree, Flowering Dogwood, Crape Myrtle, Common Smoketree, Chinese Witch Hazel, Sourwood, Common Winterberry, Japanese Red Maple, Amur Maple, Saucer Magnolia, Radiant Crabapple, Dwarf Fruit Trees, Amelanchier Canadensis, Carpinus Caroliniana, Cercis Canadansis, Chionanthus Virginicus, Cornus Florida Var Rubra, Lagerstroemia Indica, Cotinus Ooggyria, Hammelis Mollis, Oxydendrum, Euonymus Bungeanus, Acer Palmatum Var Atropurpureum, Acer Ginnala, Magnolia Soulangeana, Malus Radiant

Blue Ridge-0721.indd 19

Page 23

6/10/21 10:57 AM

Think safety...

Call 811 before digging

Homeowners can make risky assumptions about whether or not they should get their utility lines marked, but every digging job requires a call — even small projects like planting trees and shrubs. The depth of utility lines varies and there may be multiple utility lines in a common area. Digging without first calling to mark all underground facilities can disrupt service to an entire neighborhood, cause harm to you and others, and potentially result in fines and repair costs.

For your safety, please call 811 at least three business days before any digging project. In fact, it’s required by law to notify local utilities regarding digging projects. This one call will get all participating utility underground lines marked for free and help you prevent problems or injuries. Simply call 811 and answer a few questions about your location and the type of work to be done. Underground line markings by each utility will be completed in a timely manner.

Be sure to keep the ticket number 811 gives you for future references or to track your request online at: nc811.org/positive-response. Remember, know what’s below before you dig — always call 811!

Visit us on the web: BlueRidgeEnergy.com CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Doug Johnson EDITOR Renée R. Whitener PRODUCTION SUPERVISOR Jacob Puckett

Membership

DISTRICT OFFICES (828) 754-9071 Caldwell (828) 264-8894 Watauga (336) 846-7138 Ashe (336) 372-4646 Alleghany (800) 451-5474 Wilkes (800) 448-2383 PowerLine* *PowerLine is an automated account information and outage reporting system.

TOLL FREE

(800) 451-5474

OFFICE HOURS: 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM Monday - Friday Kiosks available

MAT TERS

Page 20

Blue Ridge-0721.indd 20

6/9/21 3:56 PM