The Chester County commissioners recently signed a memorandum of understanding to participate in the Southeastern Pennsylvania Regional Power Agreement Partnership. The partnership is considering the creation of a renweable energy facility that could produce sufficient electricity for Chester, Bucks, Delaware, and Montgomery counties.

Within the partnership, the commissioners are exploring the feasibility of a regional power purchasing agreement. The memorandum of understanding, approved at the commissioners' most recent public meeting, calls for hiring a consultant to look at all the options.

The partnership will consider the benefits, implications, and economies of scale involved in combining the electric needs of multiple counties, municipalities, and other institutions and authorities, as well as the potential to pursue development of a large-scale renewable energy facility, to be operated by an outside company or entity.

Creating a larger renewable electricity demand could incentivize an energy developer to build a facility to feed electricity into the power grid, reducing Chester County's and other partnership members' energy costs. Another potential benefit of the partnership could be the creation of green jobs and economic opportunity in southeastern Pennsylvania.

The development of a large-scale renewable energy partnership could take several years to complete. The memorandum of understanding signed by the commissioners is designed to start the process of collaborative planning. It does not commit Chester County or its partners to go beyond this first step, but the initial study could clear the way to move forward. The Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission will serve as facilitator and convener of the power agreement partnership.

Chester County was recently included in the list of appropriations secured by Rep. Chrissy Houlahan for funds to install 26 electric vehicle charging stations at 19 county property locations, such as trailheads, parks, and county buildings. The stations would be funded by a $645,000 federal grant.

Chester County also has an award-winning open space preservation program that has preserved more than 143,000 acres of land protected as farms, forests, public parks, and nature preserves. Earlier this year, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency confirmed Chester County as a Green Power Partner, noting that it purchases enough green power annually to meet all of the county's own electricity use.