Buckeye Power

Niagara Falls

There’s an important debate going on currently about the best way to generate electricity to power America’s homes and businesses, framed something like this: Low- or zero-carbon-emission sources that are both generally expensive and only intermittently available on the one

“While coal and natural gas provide the bulk of our electricity supply in a reliable and cost-competitive manner, we continue to seek opportunities to develop renewable energy projects that make sense for our members,” says Pat O’Loughlin, president and CEO of Ohio’s Electric Cooperatives, the trade association that provides services to the 24 electric distribution cooperatives in the state. “Our hydropower, bio-gas, and solar resources are an important part of the mix. We’re always looking to grow and expand our supply resources in economical, practical, and beneficial ways.”

Development such as the Intel manufacturing facility in Licking County is driving increasing demand for electricity, adding renewed importance to reliable coal-fired generation such as that provided by the Cardinal Plant in Brilliant.

Electric cooperatives have a long history of standing up for themselves when the needs of their members are not being met. 

Hosting elected officials at the co-ops’ Central Ohio Lineworker Training Facility in Mount Gilead or the Mone power plant in Convoy gives co-ops a chance to highlight the cooperative difference — to show firsthand how locally owned, not-for-profit co-ops do more with less every day to serve their members. 

Co-op managers and trustees also meet those leaders on their own turf, traveling to the Ohio Statehouse or to Washington, D.C., to share a united constituent voice. 

Each electric cooperative is unique, reflecting the communities it serves, the people it employs, and the history of decisions that have come before.

Electric cooperatives are not-for-profit organizations controlled by local people who are members of the cooperative, elected by the membership to represent the interests of their fellow members. Those interests generally align along the themes of safety, reliability, value, and service. 

While each electric cooperative is unique, reflecting the communities it serves, the people it employs, and the history of decisions that have come before, each electric co-op also shares the attributes of democratic local control for the benefit of its members.

Hourglass

Buckeye Power has been the generation and transmission supplier to Ohio’s electric cooperatives since 1968, producing electricity from power plants and delivering it across the high-voltage transmission network (or “grid”) to each of those 24 electric cooperatives. Throughout this long history, American Electric Power (AEP) has been a partner to Buckeye Power in the generation of electricity — first only at Cardinal Power Plant, but adding more facilities as time went on.

Lineworkers

Ohio’s 24 electric cooperatives have been through a lot together over the past 80 years. Each has had periods of celebration and success and times of trial and challenge. Each has experienced both growth and loss, and, like everyone, adapted to changes in technology, work practices, attitudes, and expectations. Through the last 80 years, Ohio’s electric cooperatives have remained united in their support for and participation in their statewide association.

Why do we STILL need coal?

Consumer-members of Ohio electric cooperatives understand the benefits of renewable energy sources like wind and solar — endless supplies that can’t be used up, with little to no carbon footprint.

Why can't we switch to all renewables? 

In a word, reliability. Ryan Strom, manager of power delivery engineering services for Buckeye Power, says, “A lot of people don’t realize when they’re using electricity at home, there is a power plant actively running to support that.” Electricity is produced as you’re using it, not stored for when you need it.

Steve Nelson

Steve Nelson didn’t necessarily plan to stay long in the job his peers elected him to back in 1996. 

Even early on, Nelson made a strong impression on the state’s other co-op managers, and he was elected as chairman of the board at a time when Buckeye Power was navigating some tricky issues, such as electricity deregulation and ever-more-stringent environmental regulation.

“I never planned to be chairman more than a little while,” says Nelson, now 65, who’s celebrating 25 years as Buckeye’s chairman this year. “I don’t know how much longer I’ll stay at it, but for now, it seems like they still want me, so I’ll keep doing what I can.”

Casey Longshore and his son, Landen, stand in a field beside a tractor.

Casey Longshore and his family are on a mission to improve soil quality at their Delaware County farm. Protecting drinking water by preventing runoff and nutrient losses at the farm are a high priority. In 2015, the Delaware Soil and Water Conservation District named the Longshores the Conservation Cooperators of the Year.

“We’d like not to be the bad guy,” Longshore says, referring to evidence that certain farming practices have led to water quality problems in Ohio waterways.

Rebecca and Ben Wever smile with their two sons.

Rebecca and Ben Wever, members of Marysville-based Union Rural Electric Cooperative (URE), attended their first co-op annual meeting this year, and they say it got them thinking more about the electricity they use.

Rebecca says she and Ben are keenly aware of events and factors that affect their energy bill, so the meeting was of particular interest. “My husband and I may be a little bit unusual there, but we want to protect our piece of paradise,” she says. “We always want to know why we pay what we do.”

Chris Weaver, chief operating officer at Bridgewater Dairy in Montpelier, stands next to his cows.

Bridgewater Dairy, a family farm in Montpelier, Ohio, has 3,000 dairy cows that produce 30,000 gallons of milk daily. They also produce an estimated 15 million gallons of manure each year.

A decade ago, Chris Weaver, Bridgewater Dairy’s chief operating officer, started turning his farm’s animal waste into something valuable — electricity — by installing an anaerobic digester.

“I wanted to manage the animals’ manure with an eye to helping the environment,” Weaver says. “I also wanted to improve the comfort of my cows. An anaerobic digester lets me do both.”