EPA Getting the Message - Anza Electric Cooperative

JAN UARY 2015
Anza Electric Cooperative
EPA Getting
the Message
‘Don’t move forward
with unnecessary
carbon rules’
Page 28
Leaves change color as water
runs in the San Pedro River
near Benson, Arizona.
PHOTO BY GEOFF OLDFATHER
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The Best of Currents Country
ANZA ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE
Katherine MacIver
ARIZONA’S GENERATION AND
TRANSMISSION COOPERATIVES
Geoff Oldfather
DUNCAN VALLEY
ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE
Steven Lunt
ELECTRICAL DISTRICT NO. 2
Roselyn Bever
GRAHAM COUNTY
ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE
Diane Junion
CURRENTS EDITOR
Pam Blair, CCC
Currents (USPS 030-520) is published
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Attention,
Golfers!
Earn $50 for your opinion.
We are looking for the best golf holes
in the West. They can be the most
challenging, most unique, most fun,
prettiest, longest, shortest or crookedest
golf holes ever.
Tell us about your favorite. Include
the name of the golf course, hole
number, yardage, par count and—most
important—why it’s the best. Send along
a photo. You get extra points for people
(you or your friends) in the picture.
Be sure to identify everyone. Also,
make sure your photo has plenty of
resolution—at least 1 megabyte in size.
Email it to [email protected]; include
the words Best Golf Holes in the West
in the subject line. Submissions must be
received by January 30, 2015. Published
winners earn $50. 
Right, golf phenom Ray, 3 years old, shows perfect
form while golfing with his grandmother in
Graeagle, California. Visit our Facebook page to
watch a video of Ray practicing his drive off the
back deck in his jammies, or view it at www.
youtube.com/watch?v=6t6ZQYFAVRs. Photo
submitted by Rozanne ReBell of Quincy, California.
Inside
January 2015
Vol. 50, No. 1
The Healing Power of Art 14
“Art washes from the soul the dust of
everyday life.”—Pablo Picasso
Also In This Issue
Plugged In 6
Side Roads 10
In the Kitchen 16
At Home 18
Outdoor Pursuits 20
Great Picture Hunt 22
Marketplace 26
Parting Shot 30
Your local utility pages: 4-5, 8, 25, 28-29, 32
J A N UA R Y 2 0 1 5
3
Prepare for
Winter Storms
Lights out?
Store these
items at home in
case of an outage.
Put together an emergency kit to weather outages
 Water
Three-day supply,
1 gallon per
person per day.
 Tools
+
-
Flashlight and
extra batteries,
can opener,
wind-up radio.
 Food
Three-day supply
of nonperishable,
high-energy food.
 First Aid, Medicine
First-aid supplies,
hand sanitizer
and at least a
week’s supply of
medications for the family.
 Documents
Include copies of passports,
birth certificates and
insurance policies.
Source: American Red Cross, Federal
Emergency Management Agency. Learn
more at www.ready.gov.
4
J A N UA R Y 2 0 1 5
While Anza Electric Cooperative strives
to keep continuous, dependable electric
power available 24/7, 365 days a year,
periodic power outages do occur.
It is always a good idea to be prepared
for an outage, but especially in winter.
Here are a few suggestions to help you
weather a prolonged outage:
• Have sufficient water. With power
out, pumps do not run. Plan on 1 gallon
a day for each member of your household. Animals require more water during
warmer times of the year. Have a backup
plan so you can get water to your animals.
• Have sufficient flashlights and lanterns ready and easily accessible.
• Keep a battery-powered radio with
fresh batteries to stay informed. For emergency alerts, try WNKI 1610-AM first.
• Maintain at least three-quarters of a
tank of gas in your vehicles. Most gas station pumps do not work during outages.
• Have a plan to keep perishable
food chilled and fresh. Keep refrigerator
and freezer doors closed. A well-filled,
unopened freezer will keep food cold for
24 hours or more without electricity.
• If you are on life support, make
sure you have a backup plan. Battery
backups are available for certain types
of equipment. Contact your supplier for
information. Be sure AEC is aware you
or someone in your household is on life
support so the account can be flagged.
This flag is used to notify the member in
the event of a planned outage. Local fire
stations are provided a copy of our life
support customers to make them aware
of a member’s special needs.
• Check on the medical needs of
family and neighbors.
• Always have a first-aid kit with
updated supplies in a convenient spot.
• Since cordless phones do not work
when the power goes out, have at least
one hardwired phone (no power pack).
• Never connect a portable generator to your house unless the proper
equipment—a transfer switch—has been
installed. Plug appliances directly into the
generator.
• Use surge protectors to protect sensitive electronic equipment, such as computers, and unplug them during a storm.
• Never touch a power line suspended in the air or lying on the ground.
• In winter, have an alternate source
of heating, along with extra fuel, such as
wood for stoves and fireplaces.
• Know how to manually operate
your electric garage door and gate. If
power is lost, your openers will not work.
• Be prepared to cook outside on
a grill or camp stove. Never use them
indoors. Without proper ventilation,
grills can be deadly. Do not heat your
home with a cooking stove, either.
• Leave a light turned on so you can
tell when power is back on.
• Make sure all appliances that were
on at the time of the outage are turned
off, in case power is restored when you
are not home.
• Call the cooperative and notify staff
of the outage or anything you have seen
or heard at the time of the outage. This
may be helpful to line crews.
• During a prolonged outage, turn
off all major appliances such as air conditioning and pumps. Wait about 20
minutes after power has been restored to
avoid overloading the co-op’s system and
to protect your equipment for any power
fluctuations. 
Anza Electric
Electric Space
Heaters Drive
Up Your Bill
An electric space heater can provide toasty comfort, but must be used with care to ensure safety.
Photo by Mike Teegarden
Winter is here, with all of its cold and
blustery weather. Time to break out the
trusty old electric space heaters, right?
Wait! Consider the effect on your electricity bill? Let’s do a little math.
A typical electric space heater is rated
at 1,500 watts. Use it for one hour and it
will cost about 25 cents. Use it for eight
hours and that is $2. But used for 24
hours a day for a month, this little energy
guzzler will add $180 to your bill.
These numbers apply to a regular
radiant-type heater. Oil-filled heaters cost
about the same to operate. The main difference between the two is the oil-filled
type operates at a lower surface temperature, and is usually safe to touch.
Both types are considered 100 percent
efficient, as they are straight resistive type
heating elements. Add an internal fan
and the efficiency drops.
Radiant types can be dangerous to use
around curtains, beds and clothing.
Units manufactured after 1991 have a
tip-over switch that will turn the heater
off if knocked over.
Consider weather stripping, caulking
and extra insulation to help hold in the
heat and keep winter outside.
Heaters can keep you warm, but you
may get steamed over your bill. 
Do You Use Life Support Equipment?
When doing maintenance on our equipment, occasionally it is necessary for Anza Electric Cooperative to temporarily disconnect
members’ power. Most affected are those who rely on life-support equipment. AEC maintains a list of those who depend on any
type of life-support system and use this list to notify these individuals of a planned outage.
If you or someone in your household is on life support, please let us know. Identification tags are placed on meters to alert
crews of the presence of a life-support system. With the member’s permission, copies of AEC’s life-support list are given to local fire
stations to make them aware of a member’s special needs.
Because power outages cannot always be controlled and the duration of the outage may be extensive, it is important to maintain
a sufficient backup supply of oxygen or other medical equipment you may need during this time.
J A N UA R Y 2 0 1 5
5
Plugged In
Using Electricity Safely and Efficiently
Improve Your
Energy
Fitness
By Jennifer Brown
The start of a new year often means
resolutions for improved health. This
year, focus on your home’s energy health.
Your wallet will reap the rewards.
Don’t Break a Sweat:
Heating and Cooling
• Pay attention to the thermostat.
A few degrees can make a difference
in your heating bill. Set the thermostat
between 65 and 68 F.
• Install a programmable thermostat,
which regulates your house comfortably
warm in winter and cool in summer.
• Open south-facing window draperies and shades in the daytime during
the heating season to allow sunlight into
your home and close them at night to
reduce the chill from cold windows.
• In the cooling season, close window coverings during the day to prevent
solar gain.
• Clean or replace furnace filters
once a month or as needed.
• Keep heating vents unobstructed
by furniture, carpeting, drapes and other
objects.
• Turn off kitchen and bath exhaust
fans within 20 minutes after cooking or
bathing. When replacing exhaust fans,
consider installing high-efficiency, lownoise models.
• In accessible areas such as attics
and crawl spaces, add an extra layer of
insulation. Consult an expert or utility
6
J A N UA R Y 2 0 1 5
representative to determine the appropriate
amount to add.
• Hot-water radiators
require attention. Bleed
trapped air once or twice
per season. If in doubt, call
a professional. Place heatresistant radiator reflectors
between exterior walls and the
radiators.
• Close chimney dampers.
An open chimney acts like a suction pipe, pulling warm air out of
the house. Close the damper as soon as
the fire is completely out.
• Circulate heated air. A ceiling fan
set at a low speed helps distribute warm
or cool air in the house, depending on
the direction of the fan. Typically, it
should move counterclockwise in the
summer and clockwise in the winter.
• Check heat ducts for leaks. Where
accessible, feel ducts for cracks and seal
leaks. Avoid cloth-backed, rubberadhesive duct tape. It tends to fail
quickly. Instead, use mastic, butyl tape,
foil tape or other heat-approved tapes.
Look for tape with the Underwriters
Laboratories logo.
Stay Light on Your Feet:
Indoor and Outdoor Lighting
• Replace 15 inefficient incandescent
bulbs in your home with energy-saving
bulbs and save about $50 a year. Replace
your old incandescent bulbs with Energy
Star-qualified bulbs
for the best quality
and savings.
• LED bulbs are
rapidly expanding in
household use. Energy
Star-qualified LEDs use
only about 20 to 25 percent of the energy and last
up to 25 times longer than
traditional incandescent
bulbs.
• Compact fluorescent
light bulbs use about 25 percent of the energy as normal
incandescent bulbs, can last 10 times
longer and save you $30 or more
throughout each bulb’s lifetime. Visit
www.energystar.gov to find the right
light bulbs for your fixtures.
• Consider buying Energy Starqualified fixtures. They are available in
many styles, including table, desk and
floor lamps, and hard-wired options for
porches, dining areas and bathrooms.
Energy Star-qualified fixtures distribute
light more efficiently and evenly than
standard ones.
• Use low-watt LEDs or CFLs in
closets and hallways where bright lights
are rarely necessary.
• Remove unnecessary lighting. Use
only the number of bulbs needed to light
an area. In track lighting, three bulbs
may do the same job as four if they are
well positioned.
• Natural light from windows is
Illustrations by Duy Mai
more efficient than electric and it is free.
Use light-colored, loose-weave curtains
to allow daylight to penetrate the room
while preserving privacy.
• Look for Energy Star-qualified
fixtures designed for outdoor use. Many
come with built-in automatic daylight
shut-off and motion sensor features.
• Use outdoor motion detectors.
Position detectors carefully to avoid false
triggering and use the lowest-watt CFL
that will do the job. Where security is
essential, leave low-watt porch lights on
all night.
• Look for LED products such as
pathway lights, step lights and porch
lights for outdoor use. You also can find
solar-powered outdoor lighting.
Strengthen Your Savings:
Windows and Doors
• Use drapes to insulate your windows. Closed drapes keep warm air
in. Open drapes allow the sun’s rays to
warm rooms.
• Apply weather stripping around
doors and windows to stop drafts. Install
common draft guards beneath doors.
Add weather stripping to window and
door frames.
• Caulk smaller gaps. Many homes
have cracks and leaks that are equivalent
to an open 2-foot-by-2-foot window.
• Double insulate windows. Storm
windows are one option. An economical
alternative is plastic sheeting.
Hit the Finish Line Hard: Water
• Heat water to the right temperature. The recommendation is 120 F.
• Take a shower instead of a bath.
The average bath uses twice as much hot
water as a 5-minute shower.
• Turn off faucets when not using
the water. Running water nonstop during shaving or brushing teeth is wasteful. This could save thousands of gallons
of water each year, as well as the energy
needed to heat it.
• Install energy-efficient showerheads
and faucet aerators. They can reduce the
amount of water released from a tap by
up to 50 percent.
• Repair leaks at once. A dripping
faucet can waste 6 to 10 gallons of water
a day. Replace worn-out washers.
• When buying a new dishwasher or
clothes washer, consider a water-saving
Energy Star model.
• Insulate your electric water heater
tank. Do not cover the thermostat.
• Insulate your natural gas or oil
water heater tank. Follow the manufacturer’s recommendations. Do not cover
the water heater’s top, bottom, thermostat or burner compartment.
• Insulate the first 6 feet of the hot
and cold water pipes connected to
your water heater. If pipes are exposed
beneath your home, insulate them with
special pipe-insulating foam, or tape
a standard insulation blanket around
them.
• Install heat traps on the hot and
cold pipes at the water heater to prevent
heat loss. Some new water heaters have
built-in heat traps.
• Drain a quart of water from your
water tank every three months. This
removes sediment that impedes heat
transfer and lowers the efficiency. The
type of water tank you have determines
the steps you should take, so follow the
manufacturer’s advice.
• Start shopping now for a new water
heater. Most water heaters last 10 to 15
years, but if yours is more than seven
years old, do some research before your
heater fails so you can select one that
most appropriately meets your needs.
Heat pump water heaters cut water
heating costs by an average of 50
percent more than standard electric
water heaters.
• Turn off your water heater when
you are away from home for more than
five days. 
Sources: Department of Energy and Efficiency
Services Group
J A N UA R Y 2 0 1 5
7
Anza Electric
Thank You, Anza Electric Members
Small change really does make a
big difference to neighbors in need
The Operation
Roundup and
Cooperative Care
Program are helping those in need.
Last March, Anza
Electric Cooperative
launched the
Cooperative Care Program
to assist local families with various needs. Funds for
the program come from Operation Roundup and
unclaimed capital credit checks.
The CCP has helped nearly 50 local families with
various needs—from utility assistance to well repairs
to food. The program provides a maximum of $300
per application.
A big thank you to the 330 AEC members currently participating in Operation Roundup.
Our small change is making a difference in the
lives of our neighbors in need.
To sign up for Operation Roundup and have your
bill rounded up to the next whole dollar—with the
change contributed to the CCP—please visit www.
anzaelectric.org and select the Community tab.
If you need help, please visit our website. Select
the Member Services tab and then either of the
Assistance menu items. Information on various programs is available. 
What is Operation Roundup?
Operation Roundup was started by
Palmetto Electric Cooperative in South
Carolina in 1989. Since then, more than
278 electric cooperatives nationwide have
adopted the program.
The concept behind the program is
to extend the principle on which electric cooperatives were built more than
60 years ago: neighbor helping neighbor.
As a Touchstone Energy Cooperative,
the program also is in keeping with one
of the core principles of all cooperatives:
commitment to community.
“Small change that changes lives” is
the foundation on which Operation
Roundup is built.
Through its billing system, Anza
Electric Cooperative rounds up the
monthly electric bill of participating
members to the next highest dollar. For
example, a bill of $73.46 becomes $74.
Your spare change alone may not
make a big difference. Individually, the
donation is pretty small change. On average, members contribute about $6 a year.
However, when you combine it with
all of your neighbors, it can change lives.
The extra cents from each participating
member’s bill is collected and transferred
to the Cooperative Care Program. 
We Say So Long to Two Valued
Anza Electric Co-op Employees
After nearly 20 years of service each, Janet Layton
and Jeff Rumbles are leaving Anza Electric.
Jeff and Janet have been tremendous assets,
and it will be hard to replace either of them.
We will miss their friendly faces and the
pleasure of working with them every day. We
wish both well in their new endeavors.
Best of luck to both of you.
8
J A N UA R Y 2 0 1 5
Janet Layton
Jeff Rumbles
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Side Roads
Discoveries Off the Beaten Path
A B&B With a Mission
The Cherry Wood Bed,
Breakfast and Barn caters to
clients who want more than
the usual B&B experience
By Victoria Hampton
Happenings Out West
Wings Over Willcox,
January 14-18
Photo courtesy of Wings Over Willcox
Birds of many feathers are celebrated at
Wings Over Willcox in Willcox, arizona.
The annual event attracts birdwatchers
and nature enthusiasts alike to view
sandhill cranes and other species that
winter in the area. The five-day event
offers a variety of activities, including
bird watching, seminars, a nature expo
featuring live animals, and photography,
agricultural and overnight ghost tours.
For more information, visit the event
website at www.wingsoverwillcox.com.
10
j a n ua r y 2 0 1 5
Pendleton appears to be just like any
other mule: jack rabbit ears and a
lackadaisical demeanor. His brown coat
glistens, and his cocked back hoof and
hanging lower lip reveal that life is good
for this 1,200-pound animal.
What sets him apart from his other
equine counterparts is his history.
Pendleton would not be alive today if it
wasn’t for Pepper Fewel’s love for horses.
“From the time I remember walking, I
was on a horse,” Pepper says.
Pepper and her husband, Terry, own
an apple and cherry orchard in Zillah,
Washington. In 2001, they added wine
tours to supplement their horse rescue
program.
“There are 22 wineries within a
12-mile radius,” Pepper says.
Settled into the rolling hills of Zillah
wine country, the Cherry Wood Bed,
Breakfast and Barn is the ideal setting
for visitors to saddle up a rescue horse
and meander from two to three wineries,
taking in the views and enjoying the
four-legged transportation.
“It’s the perfect storm,” Pepper says of
their location. “I don’t know if you could
do this anywhere else.”
The idea for the bed, breakfast and
barn evolved from a series of events in
Pepper’s life throughout the 1980s and
1990s. Pepper was a member of the local
horse-cutting club, a western riding style
competition where the horse and rider
are judged on their ability to separate a
single cow from a herd and keep it away
for a short time.
The club started riding trips to three
wineries in Zillah. At about the same
time, Pepper received requests from
people for her to find horses for them.
She met a local man who got horses from
the slaughter house. That inspired Pepper
to start a rescue program.
“My husband said, ‘If you can find
a way to feed them, you can rescue as
many as you’d like,’ ” Pepper remembers.
Above, Pepper pets Pendleton the mule, a favorite
at the Cherry Wood Bed, Breakfast and Barn in
Zillah, Washingon.
“He should have never said that.”
She laughs.
Pepper has 30 rescue horses, ranging
from Pendleton the bay mule to Booker
the palomino quarter horse and Wild Bill
the paint miniature pony.
Most of the horses are “as old as dirt,”
Pepper says, noting they range in age
from 17 to 25 years old.
“Most of them are just old, and people
don’t want them,” Pepper says.
She says many of the horses they
adopt have been abused and neglected.
Fattening up the horses up isn’t the
challenge, Pepper says.
“If we can get past some of the mental
issues, I think we’ve done good,” she adds.
Pepper’s daughter Tiffany is a certified
Feldenkrais Method practitioner and
works with the horses to prepare them
for the wine tour. She has human and
animal clients throughout the valley.
Her training helps people with arthritis,
cerebral palsy and minor to severe aches
and pains by improving how they move
their bodies.
Clark Fair says cross-country skiing around open water can be tricky, “but the scenes can be beautiful.” Clark’s friend Yvonne Leutwyler skis along Silver Salmon Creek near Aleknagik, Alaska. Photo
submitted by Clark Fair of Dillingham, Alaska.
Readers Share a Taste of Winter
“It’s a movement connecting your synapse back,” Pepper says. “It’s about being
able to move with ease.”
Pepper works with the owner of the
local feedlot to acquire horses. The
horses there are sold to a slaughterhouse
in Canada unless they are bought by an
outside buyer, like Pepper.
Before bringing a horse to Cherry
Wood, Pepper visits the feedlot and
watches how it reacts around the rest of
the horses in the pen.
If the horse wants to stay out of the
way of the herd and not get into trouble,
that is a positive sign about the character
of the horse, according to Pepper.
Pepper pays anywhere from $800 to
$1,400 for the horses.
In 2001, Pepper started charging for
wine tours. From there, she expanded
the business into a bed and breakfast by
setting up six teepees on her property.
“This isn’t for everyone,” Pepper says
of the accommodations.
The teepees are open from March to
November and allow visitors to have a
more rustic experience with Westernstyle decorations and an outhouse bathroom. In the morning, Pepper cooks
Above, a gorgeous view from Driveway Peak
near Thompson Falls, Montana. Photo submitted by Kathy Conlin of Thompson Falls.
Left, fluffy new-fallen snow covers the landscape and hangs in the bare branches of trees.
Photo submitted by July Bailey of Troy, Idaho.
a hardy breakfast for guests. They also
offer twilight tubs where guests can soak
under the sun and stars.
“I prepare meals you aren’t going
to make at home,” Pepper says of her
Swedish pancakes, pear and blue cheese
quiches and other unique breakfast items.
Proceeds from the wine tours and bed
and breakfast go to the care of the rescued horses.
“The transformation of people after
staying here and riding is remarkable,”
says Pepper. “We’ve made a lot of people
happy with what we’re doing, and we’ve
saved quite a few horses.”
Pendleton follows Tiffany around
a pasture of 15 horses waiting for her
to stop and pet him. Some join in
Pendleton’s pursuit while others watch
as she walks by and give a lip smack
signifying they are at peace in their
rescue home.
“It’s a passion and I love it,” Pepper
says. n
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