Title: America's Surprising Green Power Partners

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You may have noticed a large increase in the number of television commercials for vehicles that are able to run on E85 fuel, manufactured in large part from corn. Auto manufacturers have been dragging their feet for decades, but it appears as if they're finally ready to become part of the Green Revolution. That's great news, of course, but there have been many other companies, organizations, and government agencies in all sectors of the American economy that have been using Green power for some time.

In 2005, the EPA released its list of the Top 25 Green Power Partners, and the list includes some surprising entries. Here is the list, with Power Partners appearing in order of purchase size.

Top EPA Green Power Partners

1. U.S. Air Force
2. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
3. Johnson & Johnson, Inc.
4. U.S. Department of Energy
5. The World Bank
6. Safeway, Inc.
7. U.S. General Services Administration, Region 2
8. Whole Foods Market
9. City of San Diego, CA
10. HSBC North America
11. New Jersey Consolidated Energy Savings Program
12. Advanced Micro Devices, Inc., Austin, TX Facilities
13. WhiteWave Foods
14. Austin, Texas, Independent School District
15. Staples, Inc.
16. Mohawk Fine Papers, Inc.
17. The Tower Companies
18. U.S. Army, Fort Carson, Colorado
19. University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
20. Montgomery County, MD
21. Hyatt Regency Reunion, Dallas, TX
22. Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA
23. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
24. FedEx/Kinko's
25. East Bay Municipal Utility District, Main Wastewater Plant, Oakland, CA

The EPA's Green Power Partnership is a voluntary program that encourages businesses, organizations, and agencies to use Green power in their day-to-day practice. When Green Partners sign on with the program, they pledge to supply a significant portion of their electricity needs with energy that has been produced by environmentally friendly means.

Although there will always be room for more growth, the program is expanding, and the EPA's list of Green Power Partners has grown to include more than 550, including a number of Fortune 500 companies; city, state, regional, and federal agencies; military establishments; trade associations; and several universities.

All of those figures, when coupled with the auto industry's increasing focus on producing vehicles that will run on E85, is enough to offer Green Power enthusiasts a reason to at least become guardedly optimistic about the future of the planet and its inhabitants. Perhaps this is the beginning of the new world of Green Power that visionaries have been talking about for decades. Only time will tell, but it's definitely a start.

Copyright © Jeanette J. Fisher.

About the Author: Jeanette Fisher, author of interior design and real estate books helps home owners makeover their homes with "green design." For more home environmental issue articles, visit Environmental Psychology