Clark Public Utilities
Public Utility District No. 1 of Clark County, doing business as Clark Public Utilities Organization. After previous attempts in 1934 and again in 1936 failed, Clark PUD was formed by referendum in 1938, when the citizens of Clark County approved a proposal to create a municipal nonprofit organization to provide electric service to the County under the laws of the State of Washington. At the time, Clark County's electric service was being provided by two private utility companies, Portland General Electric (PGE) served the Vancouver area, and the Northwest Electric Company (NEC) served the remainder of  rural Clark County. Both companies had waged vigorous campaigns to defeat the measure, and did not readily withdraw from the County even after the measure was approved. As a public entity, Clark PUD was to be led by a three-member county commission charged with overseeing the utility. Clark PUD's first commissioners were elected simultaneously to the creation of the district, they were Heye H. Meyer, L. M. Jones, and Adolf Ast. Clark PUD is overseen by the Board of Commissioners, who hire and supervise a General Manager, set policy, approve budgets, establish rates, and approve major expenses. The  General Manager oversees day-to-day operations of the District. Operations. Clark PUD's electric service area is approximately 657 square miles and covers all of Clark County, except for approximately 500 acres in Camas occupied by the Georgia-Pacific Camas Paper Mill. The electric system consists of 55 substations and switching stations, one generating plant, and approximately 6,600 miles of transmission and distribution power lines. Other electric infrastructure assets not owned by Clark PUD remain in Clark County but do not serve any local customers; BPA, headquartered in Clark County, owns and operates three major substations and several transmission  lines in the county, and PacifiCorp (successor of NEC) owns and operates two hydroelectric dams along Clark County's northern boundary along with their associated transmission lines. Clark PUD's established water service area is approximately 220 square miles, but the District's responsibility to operate new water systems covers almost all of unincorporated central and northern Clark County except for areas served by the Cities of Battle Ground and Ridgefield. The primary water system and all of the satellite systems combined include 35 wells, 51 booster pump stations, and approximately 788 miles of water mains and distribution lines. The  District employs approximately 380 personnel, and serves approximately 194,000 customers. The Vancouver Service Center located at 1200 Fort Vancouver Way () serves as the District's primary administration and business office, and the Orchards Service Center located at 8600 NE 117th Avenue () serves as the District's primary operations center. Approximately 30% of Clark PUD's electricity needs are met through operation of the River Road Generating Plant, with the majority of the remainder met through purchases from BPA. Clark PUD also has a share of the wind power generated from the Combine Hills II Wind Farm in Milton-Freewater, Oregon , as well as a share of the generation from the Packwood Lake Hydroelectricity Project near Packwood, Washington. Clark PUD maintains transmission interties with BPA and PacifiCorp, and distribution interties for emergency distribution service with Cowlitz PUD and Skamania PUD.