More than 300 small businesses, schools, and cities across California will soon be receiving checks ranging from $30 to $3,000 as a reward for temporarily reducing their electricity use during high statewide demand periods. The payments are the result of a new demand response pilot program funded by the California Public Utility Commission and managed by San Francisco Community Power, in which small commercial energy users are paid to temporarily reduce their electricity. Participants, which range from well-known retailers, such as REI, to automobile dealers who are typically not at the forefront of environmental efforts, managed to cut their demand by 4.5 megawatts during August alone.

“Large corporations, like Chevron or Bank of America have long had access to programs that pay them to reduce their electricity use,” explains Steven Moss, executive director of SF Community Power, “This is the first time that smaller organizations have been able to demonstrate that they too can help ensure grid reliability and reduce polluting air and greenhouse gas emissions.”

The program not only helps to cut energy use, but also reduces pollution since the state’s most polluting resources, such as diesel back-up generators and older power plants, are only used when electricity demand spikes. The program has also prompted more long-term energy saving efforts. “This has motivated us to take other energy saving steps; we retrofitted all our lights,” said Brad Kassabian of Kassabian Motors in Dublin. Cities and organizations achieved their impressive savings through a variety of measures, including simple steps such as turning up air conditioner thermostats, using stairs instead of elevators, and turning off lights.

• Learn how to enroll in SF Community Power’s Demand Response program
• Find out more about the Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), San Diego Gas and Electric Company (SDG&E) and Southern California Edison (SCE) demand response programs