Chambersburg will continue to draw its electricity from power generated by landfill gas, under a contract extension approved by borough council. “Recycled gas to electricity is good for the environment and, in this case, provides baseload electricity for our borough power system, saving us from having to buy power off the grid,” Borough Manager Jeffrey Stonehill, who also serves as director of utilities, said in a news release.

The original agreement was with Progressive Waste’s Blue Ridge Landfill. Energy Power Partners now owns the facility. When formed, the borough constructed a power line that delivers electricity from the landfill to the borough. According to borough electric department Superintendent Ronald Pezon, the contract extension will lower the price of the energy Chambersburg is consuming from the project.

The new arrangement with EPP allows the borough to purchase this electricity at a significant discount, saving the borough $7.8 million in power costs over the next 12 plus years,” Pezon said. “Such a significant savings leads directly to lower electricity bills for our customers.”

According to Stonehill, the proposed 2020 budget currently being reviewed by Town Council includes a 1.98% across-the-board reduction in retail rates for borough electric customers. “This would be the fourth electric rate reduction in the past seven years,” Stonehill said, “and, would save the typical residential customer about $2 per month.”

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