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PaloAltoGreen Participation by Neighborhood...

Choose 100% Renewable Energy and Join a Winning Team

If you live in Palo Alto or have a business here, you can sign up for the nation's top-ranked renewable energy program, PaloAltoGreen.  Join in more than 21% of Palo Altans by choosing to support 100% solar energy - renewable energy that won't pollute and won't run out.  Palo Alto was the first community in California to be certified as a Green Power Community by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.  Now we're leading the way in supporting solar power, right here in our community!

Make a Difference

For the average Palo Alto household, participation in PaloAltoGreen reduces carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 9,700 pounds a year. You'd have to stop driving your car for 10 months to have the same impact on carbon dioxide emissions. With PaloAltoGreen, it's easy to make a difference.

Buy Green Energy, Build Green Energy

Your participation makes the air cleaner by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. It also supports the growth of renewable solar energy facilities and clean tech jobs.  To ensure your enrollment contributes to this growth, we purchase Green-E Energy certified renewable energy exclusively from new solar projects in California.  The PaloAltoGreen supply is 100% solar produced locally.   If you are curious on the details of the renewable energy and the purchases of Renewable Energy Certificates that are made through it, read the information on our FAQ page.  For more information on the facilities you support, see below.

Simple to Enroll

Enrolling is simple, voluntary, and you may cancel at any time. Just fill out the enrollment form or call (650) 329-2161.

Easy on the Pocket

PaloAltoGreen is available to all City of Palo Alto Utilities (CPAU) electric customers and costs only 1.5 cents extra per kilowatt-hour (kWh). For the average household, this adds $9.75 to the monthly utility bill. Small businesses and residents pay an additional 1.5 cents per kWh. Larger businesses can choose to participate in increments of $15 per month for each 1,000 kWh block.

Save Money

In addition to helping the environment, your enrollment can save you money. All residential customers are a part of the PaloAltoGreen Team, a discount program for Palo Alto businesses and residents participating in PaloAltoGreen, a program that rewards customers and promotes local businesses as well. Just bring the Team Card you receive in your welcome kit, and you'll get discounts at participating PaloAltoGreen Team businesses.

Is your business interested in becoming a PaloAltoGreen Team member? Sign up here, call (650) 329-2241, or email paloaltogreen@cityofpaloalto.org

Have Questions?

Visit our Frequently Asked Questions for more information. You can also email us at paloaltogreen@cityofpaloalto.org or call (650) 329-2161 or stop by the 2nd floor Customer Service Center at City Hall. If you have questions about the methodology behind our environmental calculations, visit our methodology page. To see the Power Content Label for PaloAltoGreen, click here.

PaloAltoGreen Renewable Energy Facilities

Through PaloAltoGreen, you support these wildlife-friendly wind and solar facilities in Palo Alto and western states. Thanks for helping create a stable and clean energy future! 

• Municipal Service Center (MSC):   Located on East Bayshore Road off Highway 101, this 75 kilowatt project is notable because of its solar trackers, which follow the sun. This results in almost a 50% greater ability to capture solar energy than non-tracking projects nearby.
• Cubberley Community Center:  The Cubberley Community Center, located in South Palo Alto, has been home to a wide variety of recreational activities for over 20 years. It is also the site of the largest of three city-funded solar projects. In 2008, a 117 kilowatt rooftop photovoltaic system was installed to generate electricity and protect classrooms from sun and rain.
• Lucy Evans Baylands Nature Interpretive Center:  Located amongst the salt marshes at the east end of Embarcadero Road, the Baylands Interpretive Center is home to a unique tidal and fresh water habitat as well as the City of Palo Alto’s third solar facility. Along with amazing bird watching, visitors can view the Center's rooftop solar panels using a submarine periscope.