Opt Up is Not a 10% Increase in Electric Bill
There has been some confusion about the Fairhaven Community Electricity Aggregation program and the 10% increase in renewable energy that Fairhaven has added to our electricity mix, so I hope to clear up some of the confusion.
It’s important to understand that the 10% increase in renewable energy for the standard product is not a 10% increase in your bill. To check the increase in your bill per month multiply $0.00395 by your monthly usage. The increase goes to support renewable energy infrastructure right here in New England. If that is unaffordable, you should choose Fairhaven BASIC instead, which will keep your rate at the renewable energy level equal to state requirements.
If you choose to leave the program, you will return to Basic Service and will miss out on the program benefits. Go to masscea.com/fairhaven to look at all the options available to you. You can calculate the monthly cost for each product and how these options compare to Eversource Basic Service.
This 10% increase in renewable energy is an opportunity for us to transition our electricity grid from dirty fossil fuels, such as natural gas, to clean sources, such as solar. You can go a step further and sign up for either of the two OPT UP products that have even more renewable energy: 50% or 100% of your usage.
With climate crisis effects looming, we can pay now or pay later, and we are already paying: flood zones are changing on the Southcoast because of sea level rise and the increase in extreme precipitation events is already evident. If economics are your primary concern, then consider the future cost of the climate crisis if we continue to do nothing about emissions. We will all bear this cost. Our children and grandchildren will be impacted the most. Fairhaven should be proud to be the only town on the southcoast to have added this 10% increase; this is in keeping with our status as a Green Community.
The 10% increase in renewable energy in the Fairhaven Standard product helps create more local jobs in renewable energy in our region because it increases the demand for those sources and it improves our air quality, right here on the Southcoast!
On a greater regional level, Southcoast residents who are part of the CEA program can opt up for more renewable energy. With only a modest increase in your electric bill (perhaps $15–20 per month), you can add 50% or 100% renewable energy to your home or business by going to your town from masscea.com and then completing the Enrollment Form. If you do opt up, we’d love to hear about it and celebrate your choice with a sticker to help get the word out to others! Contact us at climaterealitysouthcoast@gmail.com.
If you want to be involved in further efforts to fight the climate crisis, please join our group. We meet monthly via Zoom. Visit www. climaterealitysouthcoast.com
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Laura Gardner, Fairhaven resident, mom, teacher librarian and… Chair of Climate Reality Massachusetts Southcoast
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