MP&W offers several ways local businesses can participate in the Green Muscatine program. Green Muscatine is a program supporting current and future installation of photovoltaic arrays (solar panels) and wind turbines in Muscatine. Proceeds from contributions by commercial and industrial businesses help pay for the solar arrays and wind turbine located in front of MP&W’s Administration and Operations Center on Cedar Street. More solar arrays/wind turbines will be installed on other city buildings to lower the overall cost of operation for our customer/owners.

Commercial I & Industrial I Program
Contribute $3, $5, $7, or more a month to Green Muscatine.

Commercial II & Industrial II Program
Contribute $30, $50, $70, or more a month to Green Muscatine.

To find out if you are a Commercial I or II or an Industrial I or II customer, please contact the Energy Services Department.

Benefits of Solar Energy

Solar Energy is Environmentally Friendly
Solar energy is clean, abundant, reliable, and affordable. MP&W’s 2.2 kW photovoltaic arrays reduce the need for fossil-fuel generated electricity, offsetting CO2 emissions “greenhouse gases” by 5.3 tons per solar array per year.

Solar Energy is the Future
Our parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents had our future in mind when they built MP&W’s first electric generation unit back in 1922. Keep that tradition alive by giving for the future of Muscatine.

Solar Energy is Local
Of the energy consumed in the United States, 85 percent comes from fossil fuels, which are limited in supply. Today, the United States imports nearly 65 percent of the crude oil it consumes, Iowa imports 97 percent of the fuel it uses, and Muscatine imports 100 percent of the coal used to produce the electric energy it uses. Solar energy can even serve as a source of emergency standby power. Iowa is currently developing programs to harness the power of “green energy,” the natural resources we have right here in our own state — renewable resources, such as solar energy, wind power, geothermal energy, biomass, and hydropower.

Free Site Survey
Start using renewable energy and a brighter future for our community and our children. Call MP&W’s Energy Services Department to set up a free site survey.

Your support today will make a world of difference tomorrow.

Benefits of Wind Energy

Wind energy is a renewable energy source, produces no pollution, and eventually pays for itself. The amount of money a wind turbine saves will depend upon its installed cost, the amount of electricity you use, the average wind speed at your site, and other factors.

MP&W’s Skystream 3.7™ 1.8 kW wind turbine has a 12-foot rotor that resides on a 60-foot pole. It is expected to produce approximately 400 kW hours a month, which is being used to offset electrical energy requirements at MP&W’s Cedar Street Administration/Operations (A/O) Center. Over its life, the Skystream 3.7™ can offset more than 6,000 pounds of global warming pollutants (carbon dioxide and other gases that are associated with global warming) every year.

All-inclusive wind generators (with controls and inverters built in) are available and are designed to provide quiet, clean electricity in very low winds. This makes it ideal for small businesses to implement.

Benefits of GeoExchange Technology

GeoExchange technology taps the natural geothermal energy underground. A ground-source heat pump heats and cools your home. Fluid is circulated through an underground loop of pipe. The fluid absorbs heat from the earth during the winter and dissipates heat from the house during the summer. The heat or cold from the fluid is converted to hot or cool air by circulating it through water-to-refrigerant and refrigerant-to-air heat exchangers (similar to a car radiator).

Ground-source heat pumps are very efficient. They utilize the relatively constant temperature of the ground (50-55 degrees in Iowa) to obtain heat during the winter and provide cooling during the summer.

Ground source heat pumps can be categorized as having closed or open loops, and those loops can be installed in three ways: horizontally, vertically, or in a pond/lake. The type chosen depends on the available land area and the type of soil and rock at the installation site. These factors will determine the most economical choice for installation.

Geothermal heat pumps (sometimes referred to as GeoExchange, earth-coupled, ground-source, or water-source heat pumps) have been in use since the late 1940s. The ground-source heat pump is one of the most efficient residential heating and cooling systems available today, with heating efficiencies 50 to 70 percent higher than other heating systems and cooling efficiencies 20 to 40 percent higher than available air conditioners. That directly translates into savings on your utility bills.