Founded 54 years ago and celebrated every April 22, Earth Day brings attention to ways we can all work together to protect our planet. Pepco works hard every day to act responsibly, be a leader in addressing environmental challenges, and partner with our customers and communities to create a more sustainable future.
Here are a few examples of ways we are helping protect our plant:
Helping You Save. We offer a variety of programs and resources to help customers reduce their energy use, lower their energy bill and ultimately reduce their climate impact. Visit pepco.com/WaysToSave to access programs to make your home or business more efficient, find no- to low-cost energy savings tips, and check out tools on My Account that can show you where you use the most energy and ways you can adjust.
We’re also offering free energy savings trees to customers through our partnership with the Arbor Day Foundation. When planted properly, trees have the potential to reduce energy bills by 15 to 30 percent as they grow. They also play a critical role in improving the air quality and protecting homes from summer sun and winter winds. Trees are available on a first come, first serve basis. Visit arborday.org/Pepco to reserve a tree while supplies last.
Maintaining Critical Habitats. We’re committed to protecting wildlife and the habitats where they live and breed. Through ongoing management of our rights-of-way, the corridors of land around our power lines, we are partnering with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to promote Monarch Butterfly and other pollinator habitats, creating friendly eco-systems that can benefit a large and diverse array of species. Thanks to these efforts, 80 acres of our rights-of-way and two of our facilities have been awarded wildlife conservation certifications thanks to our efforts to provide safe habitats. We also install equipment designed to protect avian life and limit their interactions with overhead poles and wires.
Supporting Cleaner Air. In 2023, we reduced greenhouse gas emissions from our vehicle fleet by 5%, helping to reduce harmful emissions in communities we serve. This is just one aspect of our Path to Clean commitment to reach net-zero operations-driven emissions by 2050. We also support customers who may be interested in transitioning to an electric vehicle through our EVsmart program.
Powering Sustainable Impact in Our Communities. Powering a more sustainable future requires strong partnerships and support. Our Sustainable Communities Grant Program provides funding for open space projects, community resiliency programs, environmental conservation efforts and improvements to parks and recreation resources. Since 2020, the program has provided $350,000 to help community partners, local government agencies and nonprofits lead efforts to make our communities greener and more resilient.
Empowering our customers, championing responsible practices, and partnering with our communities are core elements of our sustainability strategy. While there’s always more to achieve, this Earth Month, we celebrate the progress we are making together and look forward to the exciting path ahead.