Shocking, yes. The reasons for this? Coal-powered energy plants are huge contributors. By world standards, the United States is extremely dependant on coal for electricity generation, and the Pacific Northwest is no exception. Coal-fired power plants emit dangerously high levels of sulfur dioxide, the precursor to acid precipitation. In Washington State, emissions from coal burning power plants in Centralia and Tacoma are major contributors to the trend of decreased visibility and increased acid precipitation in Mount Rainier National Park and in the state at large. Vehicle emissions, especially older vehicles, are also a large contributor to air quality degradation.

Green Power: One way we can help. So what are some ways we can help decrease air quality degradation in our daily lives? Lowering our use of power in general and fossil fuels specifically are obvious choices, but not necessarily easy to achieve. One very good and realistic option is to choose to use sustainable and clean energy sources, such as solar power, wind power, geothermal power, and hydropower. Energy companies throughout the country now offer programs that enable this. In the Pacific Northwest, for example, Puget Sound Energy (PSE) has established a Green Power Program which gives consumers the option to replace their non-renewable energy usage with clean energy by buying green tags.

Green tags are units of renewable energy that replace a specific amount of non-renewable energy, and consumers can choose how many to buy each month. In this case, PSE uses the money from the sale of green tags to buy energy produced from earth-friendly sources, which goes into the power grid and helps to increase the overall use of renewable energy resources and reduce the consumption of carbon fuels.

PSE's Green Power Program is purely optional, and most participants usually pay about 10% more on their electric bill for green power. The American Alpine Institute has gone beyond this standard and is currently one of the few organizations in the Northwest with "green tag" purchases at the 100% equivalency rate for its ongoing consumption level. AAI was named a Washington State "Energy Leader" by Puget Sound Energy "for its commitment in supporting environmentally friendly renewable energy through the purchase of Green Power."

How to buy Green Energy: To find out about renewable energy programs in your area, or to purchase universal Green Tags to offset the non-renewable energy you use in your daily life for heating and powering your house, driving your car, and flying in planes, visit the Bonneville Environmental Foundation They have set up a sophisticated Carbon Calculator that allows you to calculate the total pounds of greenhouse gases you produce per year, then to calculate and purchase the amount of Green Tags it would take to offset 100%, 50%, 25%, or a lower percentage of this non-renewable energy use. Another great site to visit is the Environmental Protection Agency's Green Power Locator, which allows you to track down companies in each state that sell green energy or have green power programs. AAI has been a member of the EPA Green Power Partnership and was recently elevated to the EPA Green Power Leadership Group.

Did you know? The average American household produces more than 35,000 pounds of greenhouse gases every year. Yikes! But the good news is it would cost only about $35/month to offset 100% of this non-renewable energy use.

The energy sources we choose have an enormous impact on the air, water, and soil of the environments in which we live in as well as those in which we recreate. In choosing to use renewable energy resources in the our homes, we can directly help to maintain the integrity of the mountains that provide so much for us - water, inspiration, and many a darn good time. With that in mind, it's hard to argue that the relatively small price of purchasing greener power isn't worth the expense.