Mar 25 2008
The Denver office of Hogan & Hartson LLP has completed an agreement to purchase renewable wind energy credits for 2008, becoming the region's largest law firm to offset all of its annual electricity costs.
As part of an agreement with Community Energy, Inc., Hogan & Hartson’s office in downtown Denver will buy 1.86 million kilowatt hours (kWhs) of renewable energy credits, offsetting almost 2.5 million pounds of carbon dioxide in 2008. The environmental benefit from Hogan and Hartson’s energy credits purchase this year alone is equal to planting 1,030 acres of trees &ndash or not driving 2.8 million miles.
“Hogan & Hartson has considerable involvement providing legal work in the expanding alternative and renewable energy sector, and we recognize the importance in offsetting the impact of the firm’s energy use,” said Denver Managing Partner Cole Finegan. “As a leader in the legal industry and Denver’s corporate community, we are committed to acting on our environmental responsibility.”
Hogan & Hartson’s alternative energy practice includes representing the nation’s second-largest wind farm on land use, environmental, corporate and other issues. The firm also represents the U.S. leaders in wind power generation, in addition to other clients involved in renewable energy.
The wind energy credit purchase is also an extension of Hogan & Hartson’s internal “Earthwell” initiative, which puts in place standards and policies to dramatically reduce energy use and minimize waste at the firm’s Colorado offices in Denver, Boulder, and Colorado Springs. The program was launched last month.
Certified clearinghouses like Community Energy of Radnor, Pennsylvania, use proceeds from Renewable Energy Credits (commonly called RECs) sales to support wind power development around the country. In Colorado, estimates are that wind power accounts for approximately two percent of Colorado’s total energy production.