NStar Green

[flexagon]

I just found out about the NSTAR Green program. (For those who are not local, NSTAR is the provider of gas and electricity in my neck of the woods.)

To quote from their "Highlights":

• Basic Service customers can choose to have half or all of their electricity use support wind power.
• There is an additional premium for this option. Customers choosing to have 50% of their electricity support wind power pay an additional 0.837 cents per kWh, while customers choosing to have 100% of their electricity support wind power pay an additional 1.396 cents per kWh.
• Wind power will be generated at Maple Ridge Wind Farm in upstate New York, before traveling into the New England power grid.

As of our last bill, we seem to be paying about 19.87 cents/kWh, so the additional 1.396 represents about a 7% premium. Our electricity bills being pretty low, this is not exorbitant... it'll be around $6 per month, split of course between me and heisenbug. That's some cheap bragging rights! I'm still even more interested in local energy generation, but setting up a PV array is expensive as hell; here is a step that can be taken immediately and economically by anyone whose account is in good standing at NSTAR.

Comments

[miyyu.livejournal.com]

That's not a bad premium for something like that! PECO, our local service here, does something similar and it's a wee bit more expensive that yours, but you get to choose the type of power source (wind, etc.)

[flexagon]

That's really cool; what did you guys pick, if I can ask? Or are you doing it at all?

[miyyu.livejournal.com]

We picked wind because we both think not enough funding goes into that. Unfortunately, the way the program works, you can only supply something like 50-60% of your electricity that way rather than the whole thing. Still, it's better than nothing.

[niralth.livejournal.com]

Since I know you are as interested in personal finance as I am, if you are ever inclined to talk about what the financial set up between you and H is, I'd love to hear it. The variety of financial agreements that exist out there between long term partners is facinating to me, and it sounds like you two might have a non-traditional one.

(M and I are tradional: all money in one pot, and I'm the one in charge of it.)

[flexagon]

Yeah, I'm constantly amazed by how many different ways couples manage money (and how many ways it can work well).

The bug and I have a yours/mine/ours kind of arrangement. Our salaries each go into our own accounts, and we have no rules about talking to the other before spending more than $X on something... individual expenses are just not the other person's business, as long as retirement saving is happening and the other half of the mortgage is getting paid. That's the nontraditional part of our deal, and I think it spares us going through a LOT of arguments. :)

We also have a joint account into which we transfer money equally and simultaneously (and in great quantity, it seems), and we use a debit card attached to that account to buy things that are joint expenses... groceries, dinners, utility bills, condo fees, etc.

Probably what we do wouldn't work as well if we were in a long-term state of one person earning, say, half what the other did. So far it's worked well for us when we earn close to the same, and also well when one of us was working and the other one was living off of savings. In a pinch either of us would support the other, but it's not necessary and neither of us wants that, so we haven't had to change yet.

With all-shared accounts, don't you feel any kind of zero-sum dynamic where if he gets to buy something fun it takes money away from you, and vice versa?

[miyyu.livejournal.com]

What an interesting approach. It sounds like a good mix of independence and interdependence.

We're just like niralth. All the money goes into one account and I manage the finances, but I tell my husband everything I do and I don't make unilateral decisions. He just doesn't like paperwork and I, perversely, do. :)

[niralth.livejournal.com]

Thanks for sharing!

There is a risk of feeling mooched off of, for sure. I haven't felt that way yet, but I recognize the possibility. But the reason why this arrangement works for us is because we have always had massively different incomes, and when we have kids he'll have no income at all. So given that long term plan, it felt perfectly right to share all our money from the start.

We also feel free to make purchases up to a certain dollar amount (undefined, but yaknowwhatImean) without consulting each other, and talk over any larger purchases.

I think the other reason it works well is that I'm the "money person" and he most definitely is not, so it gives us both peace of mind to have my eyes on everything. :)

[a-kosmos.livejournal.com]

That's really cool! We have the turbines here, but I'm not sure where the energy generated goes.

[flexagon]

You should check with your power company... I think this 'give people a choice' thing is becoming more common.

[dr-alycat.livejournal.com]

Cool, I'm glad you discovered that! I should have spread the word, as Nearly Hubby and I set up the green power thing when we moved to our current place. The extra expense has seemed negligible to us. NStar sent us a little green flag that (I assume) they wanted us to stick in the lawn as advertisement, but we opted not too... :)

[flexagon]

I might do it, because I am a nerdy goober and I think it's too easy to just not hear about things like this.

Alternatively, let's get together and use the flags to have a sword fight. :)

[say-shazam.livejournal.com]

First, glad to hear you're taking advantage of the green energy program in your state. Interestingly in MT, new energy coming from wind farms is cheaper than the coal energy, and WAAAAAY cheaper then projected costs from any new coal. Stick with it- may end up saving money in the long run.

Second, have you seen the federal incentives for home energy efficiency improvements and renewable energy systems? Check it out here: http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=154657,00.html

Our state has its own little tax credit for related improvements- maybe Mass has them too.

Finally, we use exactly the same financial system as you, and I think heavily influenced by your advice. It works fine. I make more money, but I also volunteer to pay for joint discretionary stuff. We may evolve to another system, though, because there is this kind of weird dynamic about me paying instead of simply sharing the expenses. Not sure how to remedy, since I am a little attached to my own paycheck.

[taegubcrusade.livejournal.com]

Huh. First time I've missed NStar. Otherwise I'm pretty happy with my municipal power—more reliable and cheaper than NStar, for sure. Even though we don't have an option to increase the percentage of our power that we get from renewables, though, they're doing pretty well on the eco front. In fact, I just found out about a pilot program to install PVs on municipal buildings to evaluate. Maybe I should email them about the idea of letting residents opt-in to a green power program. Hey, maybe they'll subsidize putting PVs on my house!