Snohomish County PUD’s bid to save electricity by paying customers $35 to recycle their old refrigerators got off to a powerful start Monday.
The PUD had hoped to recycle 1,000 energy-sucking refrigerators by the end of the year. If it worked, the thought was to try to make it a permanent service offered by the PUD.
As it turns out, appointments were made to pick up 777 refrigerators on the first day of the pilot program.
“It’s an overwhelming success,” said Bob Nicholas, the PUD’s manager of product development.
So successful, in fact, that the PUD is now trying to figure out how to keep the momentum going while not offending its customers because it can’t pick up all refrigerators immediately.
Nicholas expects to ask the PUD Commission for direction later this week.
In the meantime, those who call too late to fill up the last 223 spots will have their names put on a waiting list.
The unexpected surge in participation stems from Sunday news coverage, in The Herald and on two Seattle TV stations, including KCPQ-TV. The Fox affiliate promoted its evening story on the refrigerator program during its broadcast of the World Series and the Seattle Seahawks game.
“That just blew the cork off this,” Nicholas said.
Everett-based JACO Environmental had to have four extra people manning the phones on Monday just to handle the huge volume of calls, said Michael Jacobsen, the company’s controller and brother to owner Terry Jacobsen.
By 10 a.m., 250 reservations for pickup had been made, 625 by 2:30 p.m. and 777 by 5 p.m.
“It just goes to show you what kind of opportunity there is to pull these old units in and to destroy them,” Jacobsen said.
One of those who called in was Edith Patterson, who waited a half-hour before finally getting through.
“I have an extra freezer that I’d like to get rid of,” she said. “It’s pretty old.”
She will have hers picked up Nov. 13.
Recycling 1,000 refrigerators could save the PUD about 1,000 kilowatt hours of electricity per year, enough to power 80 homes, Nicholas said.
Many of the older refrigerators have toxic compounds in them that contribute to depletion of the ozone layer in the Earth’s atmosphere and to global warming, said Michael Dunham, JACO Environmental’s director of energy and environmental programs.
His company’s recycling process keeps more than 90 percent of such toxins out of the atmosphere.
Those compounds are called chlorofluorocarbons, or CFCs, Dunham said. They destroy the ozone layer by breaking up the oxygen molecules that form it.
When it’s intact, the ozone layer protects humans and other forms of life from overexposure to the sun’s ultraviolet rays, he said.
The broken-up oxygen molecules then combine with carbon, which forms carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide helps trap heat at the Earth’s surface, contributing to the gradual rising of temperatures around the globe.
Because of such problems, Snohomish County does not accept refrigerators at any of its transfer stations, so the only way to get rid of them is to call a private company such as JACO Environmental. JACO charges $25 for such services.
Because it’s designed to cut electricity use, the PUD program doesn’t cover refrigerators not in working condition, Nicholas said. Jacobsen said anyone with a dead refrigerator is invited to call his company and pay $25 to have it picked up.
Reporter Lukas Velush: 425-339-3449 or lvelush@heraldnet.com.
Sell that fridge
Call 877-577-0510 to make an appointment to have JACO Environmental pick up your old refrigerator or freezer.
Once JACO gets 1,000 reservations, your name will be put on a waiting list to be used if Snohomish County PUD extends the program.
You will be paid $35 for each unit that is recycled.
If your refrigerator is not working, it’s not covered by the PUD program. Still, JACO will pick it up for a fee of $25. Call 800-414-5072 to make an appointment.
Sell that fridge
Call 877-577-0510 to make an appointment to have JACO Environmental pick up your old refrigerator or freezer.
Once JACO gets 1,000 reservations, your name will be put on a waiting list to be used if Snohomish County PUD extends the program.
You will be paid $35 for each unit that is recycled.
If your refrigerator is not working, it’s not covered by the PUD program. Still, JACO will pick it up for a fee of $25. Call 800-414-5072 to make an appointment.
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