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Orange County Commission for the Environment <br /> DRAFT Meeting Summary <br /> June 13, 2022; 7:00 pm <br /> Hybrid Meeting <br /> Present: Kim Piracci, Kim Livingston(via Zoom), Kristie Mather(via Zoom), Veronica <br /> Penn Beattie, Jessie Birckhead, Jaya Nair(via Zoom), Elizabeth McWhorter, Bill <br /> Ward, Ian Morse, Reade Oakley <br /> Absent: Jane Harris (excused), Carrie Fletcher <br /> Staff: Wesley Poole, Chris Hirni, Amy Eckberg, David Stancil, Kalani Allen <br /> I. Call to Order <br /> Chair Kim Piracci called the meeting to order at 7:07pm. <br /> II. Additions or Changes to Agenda <br /> No Changes to Agenda. <br /> III. Approval of DRAFT Meeting Summary—May 9', 2022 <br /> Bill Ward motioned to approve meeting summary. Jessie Birckhead seconded the motion. <br /> With no objections the May meeting summary notes were approved. <br /> IV. Orange County Residential Solar- Discussion <br /> Amy Eckberg gave a presentation on the email from Mr. Rust, an Orange County citizen <br /> and one of the 15,227 customers of Piedmont Electric Cooperative (PEMC), according to <br /> Eckberg's research for the presentation. The County Manager asked CFE to talk through <br /> and choose the best strategy for filing an appeal with PEMC. Mr. Rust voiced his worries <br /> over the start of the climate and the PEMC reimbursement policy in an email to the <br /> BOCC. He asked for two things in the email: 1. BOCC assistance for solar adoption by <br /> households and businesses, and 2. a modification to the PEMC net metering credit rate. <br /> Eckberg contrasted Piedmont Electric's credit rate of 3.47 cents per kWh with Duke <br /> Energy, another electric provider in the county, which was at 10.36 cents per kWh. In her <br /> presentation, Eckberg emphasized data on solar power in Orange County, where there are <br /> presently 662 solar PV systems, 92 percent of which are residential and have increased <br /> by 123 percent since 2015. Speaking on the topic, David Stancil said that the County <br /> Manager had asked him to react to the resident. Stancil gave the name and contact <br /> information for Ed Durham at PEMC, to whom they should write their letter. Reade <br /> Oakley shared his personal interactions with PEMC and Duke Energy. As a result of this <br /> discussion, the Commission determined that PEMC provides credits to consumers who <br /> use solar energy excessively whereas DE does not. The outcome of the discussion and <br /> Page 1 of 3 <br />