Varsity Bike & Transit has gone greener. We have purchased wind credits for our electrical consumption through X-Cel energy. Wind credits are a promise by the consumer to support financing wind power that goes into the national grid, which of course for now is more expensive to produce than conventional “brown” energy. Our power consumption increased when we moved to our new space down the street. This is because it is larger space, recharging the batteries for the electric bikes that we now sell( though it is only 5-10 cents per charge) and because of the grow light we have for our green wall( it is working and the plants are growing like crazy). We felt a need to offset the increased power usage and decided to purchase wind credits to go with an environmentally sound and renewable power source. It was very easy and is only going to increase our monthly bill by about $20. The only odd thing is that you must sign up for a 3 year term with X-Cel energy. This is ok with us because we are planning to try and go green for the long term no matter what happens. This is not just a response to a trend but a change in our outlook and business model. We are always looking for other ways to make Varsity Bike & Transit greener. Currently we recycle tubes and aluminum. We would like to do tires and steel but have not found an effective way to yet. Suggestions are welcome.

Tags: green transportation, recycling, sustainability, wind credits