A $19,848 grant from Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative and the Lower Colorado River Authority will allow Round Top to install energy-efficient outdoor lighting on its historic town hall and the public square that surrounds it.
 
The Community Development Partnership Program grant, along with $7,000 in matching funds, will pay for eight vintage-style fixtures that will house LED bulbs. Four of the fixtures will be placed above entrances to the town hall, and four will be attached to poles to light sections of the square. All eight fixtures will fit with the design of Round Top’s mid-1920s town hall and be dark sky compliant, directing their light downward.
 
“Round Top is a dark sky community, and we have deliberated about how to accomplish this project and meet the dark sky requirements for about five years now,” said David Stall, a special assistant to Round Top’s mayor. “This was not really driven by the city council, but by community organizations. Those groups selected the poles and the fixtures and made their recommendations to the town.
 
“Our population is about 90 people, so funding is always a challenge,” Stall added. “We looked out and saw this grant opportunity – so this was very, very welcome and allows us to get this project completed in a timely matter.”
 
Stall said the new lighting will boost the daytime and nighttime look of the public square while also improving security for civic meetings at the town hall or outdoor events on the square. Located in Fayette County, Round Top draws visitors annually to its series of Antique Weeks, during which many vendors set up on the public square. The square also is central to Round Top’s annual Fourth of July celebration, which began in 1851.
 
The community grant is one of seven grants being awarded by Bluebonnet and the LCRA through LCRA’s Community Development Partnership Program, which helps volunteer fire departments, local governments, emergency responders and nonprofit organizations fund capital improvement projects in LCRA’s wholesale electric, water and transmission service areas. The program is part of LCRA’s effort to give back to the communities it serves. Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative is one of LCRA’s wholesale electric customers and is a partner in the grant program.

A $20,000 grant from Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative and the Lower Colorado River Authority will help the McMahan Volunteer Fire Department replace the deteriorating 30-year-old metal siding on its fire station.

The Community Development Partnership Program grant, along with $5,000 in matching funds, will allow the department to re-side the fire station and get rid of openings in the existing siding that are leading to energy waste and higher heating and cooling bills. The holes also expose valuable equipment to weather damage, wildlife and theft.

“It sorely needs to be done,” Capt. Reid Davidson said. “It is rotten down the whole southside of the building and the other side is getting there. Re-siding is essential to protecting our station and everything in it.”

New insulation will be added after the metal siding is installed.

The station houses three brush trucks, a fire engine and a rescue truck, plus other equipment and tools. The 22-member McMahan fire department serves a population of 4,000 and covers Caldwell County and portions of Bastrop County.

Davidson said the repairs have been needed for years, but because they’re in a rural area, funding for projects like this isn’t always available.

“We try to be good stewards of the community, but there’s not a lot of money out there, so we try to be diligent about taking care of what we do have,” Davidson said. “Right now, we’ve been using wood to block the exposed area, but there is really not a whole lot we can do, and the problems would get worse if not addressed.

“The grant is a godsend,” he said. “This is going to go a long way to protect our assets and ensure we’ll have them in the future.”

“Keeping the firefighters in our service area strong and safe is of tremendous importance to the cooperative,” Matt Bentke, Bluebonnet’s General Manager and CEO, said. “It is essential that their facilities and equipment are in top condition. By helping with that, we also help protect the lives of both firefighters and those who live in the community.” 

Through the CDPP grant program, Bluebonnet and LCRA assist first responders throughout the service area to help keep emergency responders and the public safe. 

The community grant is one of seven grants being awarded by Bluebonnet and the LCRA through LCRA’s Community Development Partnership Program, which helps volunteer fire departments, local governments, emergency responders and nonprofit organizations fund capital improvement projects in LCRA’s wholesale electric, water and transmission service areas. The program is part of LCRA’s effort to give back to the communities it serves. Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative is one of LCRA’s wholesale electric customers and is a partner in the grant program.

Applications for the next round of grants will be accepted in July. More information is available at lcra.org/cdpp.

By Sharon Jayson
More than a year of living in a pandemic means we’ve never thought so much about health and hygiene. Being mindful of everything from the air we breathe to the surfaces we touch (or don’t touch) has turned many of our homes into safe and sanitary sanctuaries. 

The technology industry has noticed. Innovations in electronic devices and other tech items are streaming into the marketplace, with an emphasis on cutting-edge solutions to purify the air, clean our surroundings and refine touchless technology.  

Every January, tech innovations and thousands of new products with the potential to transform lives are presented at the massive CES (formally called the Consumer Electronics Show), usually held in Las Vegas. This year’s CES, produced by the Consumer Technology Association, occurred completely online. Nearly 2,000 companies unveiled products. 

The first-ever digital CES showcased large and small air purifiers, voice-activated and touchless appliances with ultraviolet light sanitizers, and anti-germ gadgets galore, as well as items to monitor household water and electric use. 

Clearing the air

Individuals with allergies or asthma are well acquainted with air purifiers, which remove particles and pollutants to improve indoor air quality. But the COVID-19 virus made air quality an obsession and purifiers are having a moment — especially ones that are more mobile, energy-efficient and effective at air filtration. HEPA air filters — long considered the industry standard — have been joined in the purifier arena by UV light and other forms of virus-disinfecting technology. 

Many new air purifiers are not cheap or small and are more suited for businesses. One purifier in the in-between size and price range is the Brondell Pro, which lists five types of protection, including a UV disinfection lamp and a “plasma generator,” which generates negative ions to eliminate microorganisms. It cleans a 538-square-foot area and is $650.  

You’ve probably seen 3M’s Filtrete air filters for home HVAC units. The company rolled out two air purifiers — one for smaller spaces (150 square feet) for $275 and a second for larger areas (310 square feet) for $329. 
 

Other new air purifiers are smaller and mobile. The LG PuriCare mini air purifier weighs in at a little over 1 pound and quietly runs for up to 8 hours on a rechargeable battery. It can be operated via a smartphone app and costs $150. At the same price and weight is the new Luft Duo portable air purifier. It doesn’t require a filter, cleans about 120 square feet and costs $150. The FrescheAir purifier fits in your your vehicle’s cup holder, is motion-activated, plugs into a USB car charger and costs $100. 

Touch-free appliances and disinfecting devices 

Many of the top touch-free devices at CES for the kitchen and bath are pricey, such as Kohler’s Konnect touchless kitchen faucet (voice- and motionactivated, $950), which monitors water use. It’s more costly cousin, a Kohler hands-free “no-touch flush” toilet, opens and closes automatically and flushes with a wave of the hand. Moen has a similar “smart faucet.” 

Kohler touchless and vice-activated kitchen faucets respond to commands like 'fill my pot.'

Remaining in the very expensive but interesting category is an LG refrigerator that automatically opens and closes with voice commands, complete with UV light built into the water dispenser, at about $3,000.  

A more practically priced home device from Kohler and powered by Phyn is a DIY home water monitor that can detect leaks and tell you how much water each fixture uses. It is expected to cost about $300. 

The 2Office Antimicrobial Backpack by Targus can hold a laptop and has an antimicrobial-infused protective finish on major touch points that creates a cleaner surface to help prevent microorganism growth. There’s no guarantee that it will stop the COVID-19 virus, though. It will cost about $120. 

Numerous gadgets touting germ-killing UV light sanitizers showed up at CES, but consumers should read the fine print. These gentler versions of high-intensity UV-C lights used in hospitals usually require extended shine time to eliminate germs and some viruses from a surface, and there’s no promise they will kill the COVID-19 virus. 

While these purifying products are taking center stage, cleaner indoor air and germ-free surfaces will probably remain in demand long after pandemic fears subside.

It’s in the details: tracking home energy use

Working and learning from home may become part of the post-pandemic lifestyle. So much home-based activity has led to increased electric use in many households, according to multiple studies. One study released earlier this year by Sense, a home energy monitoring company, found that average electric use in U.S. homes increased 9.3 percent between April and August 2020, compared with the same period in pre-pandemic 2019.

Parks Associates, a Dallas-area market research and consulting company specializing in emerging technology solutions, found 45 percent of more than 10,000 households surveyed in early 2021 adjusted their thermostats to save energy and money, and 42 percent had switched from incandescent light bulbs to CFL or LED bulbs, both more energy efficient. 
 

One product shown at CES — the Square D Wiser Energy smart home monitor system by Schneider Electric — lets you track and manage home energy use. Installed (by an electrician) into the house’s electrical or breaker panel, the smart device provides (via an app) real-time energy use information for your appliances, notifications to tell you when devices are on or off, and solar panel generation (if you get an add-on). It starts at $200.

Download this story as it appeared in the Texas Co-op Power magazine »

Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative’s Board of Directors unanimously voted during its April meeting to return $4.7 million in capital credits to member-owners of the cooperative. Beginning in May, Bluebonnet’s members will receive a credit on their electric bill for their share of $4.7 million in capital credits, a $500,000 increase over last year.

“Approving the amount to return in capital credits is one of the best things we get to do as Directors on behalf of our members,” said Ben Flencher, board president. “The credit our members will see on their bills in May is one of the many benefits of being a member-owner of Bluebonnet. During the last few years due to growth and our financial success we have been able to return record amounts to our members.”

Capital credits are excess revenue above what it takes to run the co-op. Every April, Bluebonnet’s Board of Directors approves the capital credits payment during its April meeting. When determining how much to return to members, the Directors consider the impact that the amount returned to members will have on electric rates and the co-op’s financial strength.

The amount each member gets back depends on how much electricity they used in previous years through 2020 and how long they have been a Bluebonnet member. Current members will see a credit on their May electric bill for their share of this year’s capital credits retirement. Former members who are still owed a capital credit will receive a check in May or June.

Since 2005, Bluebonnet has returned $66.7 million to its members in capital credits.

“The ability to return millions of dollars to our members is possible because of prudent financial decisions and responsible daily operations,” said Matt Bentke, Bluebonnet’s general manager. “Bluebonnet’s Board of Directors and all employees have great respect for our fiduciary duty to our members. That in turn has led to the financial capacity to provide record capital credits to our members in 2021, and to reinvest more than ever in the Bluebonnet electric system, employees and the communities we serve.”