SAN FRANCISCO, CA:
NJ becomes one of cleanest-powered state governments in the nation

The Green-e Program announced today that the State of New Jersey has committed 12 percent of its annual energy use to Green-e certified renewable energy. Green Mountain Energy Company will provide selected New Jersey state-operated facilities with green electricity that meets Green-e’s strict environmental and consumer protection standards.

New Jersey’s decision to power 196 state-operated facilities with Green-e certified renewable electricity is exemplary. “We see this bold purchase by New Jersey as more evidence of the strength of the Mid Atlantic green power market and the important role of State Governments in providing leadership by procuring renewable power for their facilities,” said Green-e Program Manager Gabe Petlin. New Jersey’s purchase of 152 million kWh of green electricity represents 12 percent of the total electricity used by the state government, the largest commitment by a US state to green power to date.

“Governor McGreevey and the State of New Jersey are helping to lead by example,” said A. Clifton Payne, Jr., eastern region president for Green Mountain Energy Company. “Making electricity causes more air pollution than any other industry. Choosing cleaner and renewable sources of electricity can, over time, help improve air quality.” “That’s like not driving 136,831 trips by car up the length of the New Jersey Turnpike - - which is more than 20 million miles,” Payne illustrated.

New Jersey joins Pennsylvania and Maryland in its commitment to purchase renewable electricity, which makes the Mid Atlantic the largest competitive green power market in the nation. According to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory of the U.S. Department of Energy, only three other states have implemented government green power set-aside programs: Maryland at six percent of the official state electric load, Pennsylvania at five percent, and Tennessee at two percent. (New York has set a goal of 10% renewable electricity service for state-run facilities by 2005.)

An increasing number of governmental agencies including the U.S. Department of Energy and the State of Maryland are choosing green-e certified power products as a means to provide third party verification and public assurance. New Jersey’s decision to receive Green Mountain Energy’sm “Enviro Blend,” a Green-e certified product, affirms the benchmark for states and governmental purchasers to provide green power with an independent assurance of meeting strict environmental standards.

To earn Green-e certification, a product's energy supply must come from at least 50% eligible renewable resources, such as energy from the sun, the wind, the heat of the Earth, small or low-impact hydropower, biogas, or biofuels. Green Mountain Energy Company also agrees to abide by the Green-e Code of Conduct, and to submit marketing materials to CRS to meet Green-e disclosure and truth-in-advertising requirements. The company will undergo an annual verification process audit to document that the company purchased enough quantity and type of renewable energy to meet customer demand and marketing claims

Families and businesses throughout New Jersey can choose renewable electricity through the New Jersey Energy Choice program (www.njenergychoice.com), or through Green Mountain Energy Company (www.greenmountain.com)

More About Green-e and the Center for Resource Solutions (CRS) Green-e, a program administered by CRS, is a voluntary certification program for a variety of product offerings including retail products in competitive markets, green pricing products in regulated markets, wholesale and commercial products as well as "green tags" or renewable energy certificates nationwide. Through these activities and services, the Green-e Program promotes product quality, consumer confidence and best practices in green power procurement. More information on Green-e is available at http://www.green-e.org. CRS is a nonprofit organization that encourages sustainable growth and promotes the use of clean energy. More information on CRS is available at www.resource-solutions.org.