Proactive research brings lower-cost, effective environmental solutions

Rural electric cooperatives have long been pioneers when it comes to bringing affordable electricity and the quality of life it provides. That includes finding innovative ways to meet environmental regulations that achieve results and help us manage the costs of producing electricity for our members.

Our proactive research, planning, preparation and partnerships are all hallmarks of Associated Electric Cooperative’s work to balance our environmental responsibilities with our mission of providing affordable, reliable electricity to our members.

Our investment in environmental controls and research into lower-cost technologies have positioned Associated Electric to comply with environmental regulations effectively and in the lowest-cost manner possible.

For example, Associated Electric was researching technologies more than a decade before the compliance date for the mercury reduction rule. We broke ground as the first to lower these emissions up to 90 percent with use of refined coal technology in our cyclone units, and we voluntarily reduced emissions years ahead of the 2016 compliance date.

We were the first cooperative to use Platepiles technology to stabilize embankments at our New Madrid Power Plant, achieving as good, if not better results than traditional methods and saving our members nearly a million dollars.

We also donated use of land for pollinator habitat and an agriculture project that could change decades of farming practices, helping to protect the land and future farmers, who just may happen to be members too.