The reality, however, is that the majority of so-called green marketers are not changing the way power is created because they are relying on facilities that existed prior to deregulation. The result is no net gain. The amount of green power currently in the grid is nearly the same now as it was prior to deregulation. So far, Rader says, new green-power subscribers have done little more than help pay for power generation that was already in place. Nor are green marketers replacing brown utilities.
Green consumers have to choose wisely about where they put their money.
An example is Commonwealth Energy Inc., the second-largest provider of green energy in Santa Cruz County, with 640 subscribers. Almost 200 consumer complaints about Commonwealth's billing procedures persuaded the California Public Utilities Commission to launch an investigation in June 1999. The CPUC discovered that Commonwealth had tacked additional charges on consumers' bills for power for which they'd previously paid. The CPUC ruled that Commonwealth had no authority to charge additional fees because it hadn't notified customers of this possibility when they signed up. The proposed settlement was recently halted after the CPUC announced this month that further investigation was warranted.