North Dakota Electric Cooperative - nplains.com pages/NP_JULY2018.pdf · schedule the work and make sure your electric service is ... the cooperative’s electric rates. While the

[email protected]

800 882 2500Cando Office: 609 4th Ave., Cando, ND 58324Carrington Office: 1515 West Main, Carrington, ND 58421

OFFICE HOURS:Mon.-Fri. 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

BOARD & MANAGEMENT:President ..............................................Tracy Boe, MyloVice president ...............................Curtis Wiesz, HeatonSecretary/treasurer ...........Russell Carlson, JamestownAssistant Secretary/treasurer .....Randy Simon, OberonDistrict 1 .........................................Mark Brehm, CandoDistrict 1 .........................................Bruce Olsen, CandoDistrict 2 .........................................Dave Teigen, RugbyDistrict 3 ........................................Jack Geske, PingreeDistrict 3 .................................Curtis Hanson, PettiboneGeneral Manager ....................................Jay JacobsonManager of Engineering...............................Gary AllenIT Manager...........................................Scott BuchholtzOperations Manager ................................Craig RysavyDirector of Communications and Public Relations......................................Connie KrappChief Financial Officer .............................Bruce GarberDirector of Business Development ...Joann RodenbikerNorthern Notes Editor ..............................Connie KrappNorthern Notes Asst. Editor..........Katie Ryan-Anderson

NORTHERNPLAINSElectric Cooperative

N

NNews from Northern Plains Electric Cooperative

JULY 2018

North Dakota Electric Cooperative

Sixteen North Dakota students participatedin the 2018 REC Youth Tour.

PHO

TO BY LIZA KESSEL

www.nplains.com NORTHERN NOTES , JULY 2018 C1

• Youth Tour• Take time for safety• Operation Round Up

JULY 2018 INSIDE

Sixteen high school students from across North Dakota, including Kayla Nyhagen, have returned

from a weeklong, Rural Electric Cooperative Youth Tour courtesy of their local electric cooperatives and the National Association of Rural Electric Cooperatives (NRECA).

Kayla Nyhagen, who represented Northern Plains Electric Cooperative on the tour, is the daughter of Scott and Rebecca Nyhagen, who are NPEC members living in Cando.

This year’s Youth Tour involved 1,700 students from 43 states. The tour, held June 9-15, included sightseeing, visits with elected officials and lots of fun meeting peers from across

the nation. Delegates earned their spots on the Youth Tour by writing a short essay.

In their winning entries, the young writers described the many ways we can honor and look after the 20-million military veterans who have served and sacrificed on our behalf.

For more than 50 years, the Youth Tour has taken students from electric co-op service areas to our nation’s capital to learn more about our country and the cooperative business model.

On their 2018 visit, Youth Tour delegates toured the White House and memorials to past presidents Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Delano Roosevelt as

well as monuments honoring the sacrifices of veterans of World War II and the Vietnam and Korean Wars. During visits to the museums of the Smithsonian Institution, the students saw and experienced natural, historical and artistic treasures. Other fun stops included historic homes of former president George Washington’s Mount Vernon and a boat cruise down the Potomac River. Among other Youth Tour highlights were a solemn and sobering visit to Arlington National Cemetery where the group laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns.

“The Washington Youth Tour is one way we show the youth of our service area that Northern Plains Electric is more than their electricity provider,” said Northern Plains Electric’s General Manager Bruce Garber. “We care about the prosperity of our communities, and that includes providing special opportunities for these exceptional students and preparing them for future success.”

REC Youth Tour 2018

North Dakota Youth Tour students met with Congressman Kevin Cramer. Youth Tour participants witnessed the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

Students on the Youth Tour got to take in a Washington Nationalsbaseball game.

CO

URTESY PH

OTO

S

Kayla Nyhagen

C2 JULY 2018 , NORTHERN NOTES www.nplains.com


Northern Plains Electric Operation Round Up approves charitable grants

THANK YOU,Northern Plains

Electric members, for participating in

Operation Round Up

At its June meeting, the Northern Plains Electric Operation Round Up board of directors approved grants totaling $9,000 to help support worthy causes.

These charitable grants are made possible through the generosity of Northern Plains Electric Cooperative members who voluntarily elect to have their electric bills rounded up to the next dollar. The donated amount averages about 50 cents a month for each participating member, and raises approximately $37,000 each year.

Since the program’s beginning in October 1998, grants totaling $720,512 have been awarded to 982 local charitable causes.

Grants approved in June include:• Raenett Tewes, Harvey, to assist with medical expenses.• Todd Davis, Belcourt, to assist medical expenses.• Cruz Krause, Carrington, to assist with medical expenses.• Brett Th omas, Cando, to assist medical expenses.• Jeanne Hoyt, McHenry, to assist with medical expenses.• Faith Rehling, Maddock, to assist with medical expenses.• Lisa Harmon, Maddock, to assist with medical expenses.• Th omas Wetzel, Oberon, to assist with medical expenses.• Gloria Peterson, Cando, to assist with medical expenses.• Janet Bennett, Devils Lake, to assist with medical expenses.• Gloria Seltvedt, Harvey, to assist with medical expenses.

Do you know someone who faces a challenge? If so, you may want to consider submitting an application on their behalf. Operation Round Up charitable grains are making a difference in the lives of people right here in our region.

The Operation Round Up board meets every quarter to disburse funds to worthy individuals and organizations. The board will meet again in September to review applications.

If you would like additional information about this worthy program, please contact Northern Plains Electric Cooperative by emailing [email protected] or calling 800-882-2500; or, you may obtain guidelines or download applications at www.nplains.com. n

Are you enrolled in Northern Plains Electric’s Operation Round Up?

An easy way to tell is by looking at your monthly statement. If the amount you submit to Northern Plains is routinely rounded up to the nearest dollar (in other words, you typically have a bill that is stated all in dollars, $99, $101, $404 or $508 and includes no cents), you are likely a part of this worthy cause that has helped so many.

But if you are not presently enrolled and would like to be, please give Northern Plains a call! We can set you up as an Operation Round Up in minutes! Call Northern Plains at 1-800-882-2500 to enroll in Operation Round Up today!NEED

HELP?

Help someone in need



Is there a new home, farm building, or grain handling system in your future?

Do your construction plans include a grain handling system, farm shop, or a new home? Or possibly, you are planning to make the switch to

electric heat. If you need service to a new location, will be increasing your electric load, or if it looks like your new construction site may be too close to a power line, please notify Northern Plains Electric Cooperative at once.

Northern Plains Electric district engineers – Kevin Larson and Rodney Kitsch from our Cando office, and Rich Short from the Carrington office – will gather needed information and work with you on the requirements of your electrical service.

Often, they will meet with you to discuss your needs and

determine whether the electric service and power lines need to be relocated to serve you efficiently and safely. And they’ll check the metering assembly and transformer to determine if it is large enough, or whether it must be upgraded to handle your additional electrical needs.

If power lines must be extended to a new service or service upgrade, they will check the distances and calculate the anticipated member-investment for the line extension.

Please call Northern Plains as soon as your construction plans are definite so our operations department can schedule the work and make sure your electric service is ready when you need it. You can reach Northern Plains Electric at 800-882-2500. n

Rich Short

Rodney Kitsch

Kevin Larson



Line extension charges

Remember to plan for power line clearances when building!

Charges to the member for extending line to new accounts or to accounts needing more capacity are all determined through board policies at the cooperative. In these policies, the board considers what part of the

cost for the new line or new service should be charged directly to the member needing the facility, and what part of these costs should be recovered through the cooperative’s electric rates.

While the board of directors routinely reviews these policies to account for adjustments needed because of inflation, the overall philosophy governing the portion to be paid directly by the member is generally retained from year to year as a matter of fairness to both new and long-time members.

Line extension costs are those costs associated with line materials and labor, and labor to establish the new service. The cost of the service equipment – the transformer, meter and meter loop – is not billed to the member, but rather is recovered through the electric rates charged to members in that rate category.

For more information on Northern Plains line extension charges, contact our engineering department at 800-882-2500. n

Your cooperative guidelines for required power line clearances follow the guidelines established by the National Electrical Safety Code. The code requires allowances for the height of the bin or building PLUS the additional 18 feet minimum clearance as established by the American National Standards Institute.

Example: A bin 40 ft. high would require a power line clearance of 58 ft. (40 ft. bin height plus 18 ft. clearance = 58 ft.)

Due to limitations on pole heights, Northern Plains guidelines do NOT allow bins to be placed beneath overhead lines!

Questions? Call Northern Plains Electric at 800-882-2500!

Dispatch serviceprovides 24-hour relief

Summer storms sometimes cause power outages; but, no matter what time of the day or night, Northern Plains Electric Cooperative’s lineworkers are just a phone call away.

During the cooperative’s normal business hours of 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, a Northern Plains employee will answer your call.

When you place a call after-hours, or on weekends, it will be answered by the Northern Plains 24-hour dispatch service located at Basin Electric Power Cooperative’s headquarters in Bismarck.

The after-hours dispatchers will answer in person, or if outages are widespread, your call may be handled by an automated answering system. Please use the automated system to record your outage, or any other problem you may wish to report.

We ask our members to use our regular numbers; 800-882-2500 or 701-968-3314, Cando, or 701-652-3156, Carrington, to report outages any time of the day or night.



Are your lights on dim? Is it time you upgraded YOUR service?

Many electric systems on farmsteads or in homes built in the 1960s and 1970s were designed when we had far fewer electrical devices—one

television, one refrigerator, one radio, and one small freezer, for example.

Today, how many devices do YOU have in your home, yard, garage, shop? We can’t count the gadgets we are plugging in, and those 60-amp services of yesteryear just aren’t keeping up anymore. Tip: If your lights dim when your refrigerator kicks in, it may be because your service

needs an upgrade to 200-amp service. But don’t despair! Upgrading can save you money on

your monthly bill by achieving greater efficiency. It can achieve greater safety, as well as wear and tear on your appliances and electronics, too! It’s not necessarily that complex a procedure, and Northern Plains will do its part by reviewing our service, and, if necessary, “heavying up” our transformer and wires to your meter! Call Northern Plains Electric’s engineering department at 800-882-2500 to find out more! n

REMEMBER!811 is the numberyou should callbefore you beginany digging project.

Smart digging meanscalling 811 beforeeach job. Whether youare a homeowner or aprofessional excavator,one FREE call to 811gets your undergroundutility lines markedfor FREE.

You NeverKnow What’sBelow.

Progressive Agriculture Safety Day inPartnership with Common Ground Alliance© 2008 Common Ground Alliance

www.call811.com



Overhead power lines are necessary to deliver electricity to hardworking farmers and ranchers, but those same power lines can also be deadly if not treated with respect. While you need to focus on the fi eld and your machinery, Northern Plains Electric Cooperative urges you to also watch for electrical hazards around the farm or ranch.

Be awareFarmers and their equipment should always be 10 feet away from power

lines on all sides. Field cultivators and sprayers can often reach as high as 12 feet in the air. Practice extreme caution and use a spotter to make sure you stay far away from power lines when you use tall equipment.

If you have purchased new equipment, be aware of antennas or other attachments that may pose new hazards. A newer, bigger piece of equipment may no longer clear a line. In addition, shifting soil may also affect whether or not machinery avoids power lines from year-to-year.

Power lines also may sag over the years. If power lines on your property are sagging, contact your electric cooperative to repair the lines. Never try to move a power line on your own.

Overhead power lines are not the only electric hazard on the farm. Pole guy wires, used to stabilize utility poles, are grounded. However, when one of the guy wires is broken, it can become charged with electricity. If you break a guy wire, call the cooperative to fi x it. Don’t do it yourself.

Follow these other tips:• Look over work areas carefully for overhead power lines and utility

poles. Make sure you, your family and employees know the location of overhead power lines, and use routes to avoid the lines when moving equipment. Do this every year, as equipment sizes and soil conditions may change.

• Be aware of increased heights of equipment, especially new equipment with higher antennas.

• Avoid moving large equipment alone. Have someone watch as you move equipment to ensure you are clear of power lines.

• Be extra careful when working around trees and brush; they often make it diffi cult to see power lines. n

What if you contact a power line?

Imagine that you are driving a tractor to the fi eld when things come to a screeching halt. You look back to see what’s stopping you, only to discover that you’re tangled in an overhead power line! What do you do? • First, DON’T climb out. If

your equipment does contact a power line, stay in the cab and call for help. Warn others to stay away and wait until the electric cooperative arrives. Most utility lines are uninsulated, bare wires. Do not let your body become a direct link between the power line and the ground.

• If you must leave the tractor due to immediate danger, such as a fi re, jump as far away as you can, making sure that no part of your body touches the tractor and the ground at the same time. Land with both feet together and hop or shuffl e your feet a few inches at a time, making sure to never break contact with the ground or cause separation between your feet.

• Once you’re off the tractor, do not go back until Nothern Plains Electric co-op disconnects the power line.

STAY SAFE ON THE FARM


CANDO OFFICE:609 4th Ave., Cando, ND 58324

CARRINGTON OFFICE:1515 West Main, Carrington, ND 58421

OFFICE HOURS:Mon.-Fri. 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

BOARD & MANAGEMENT:President .........................................................

Tracy Boe, Mylo Vice president .................................................

Curtis Wiesz, Heaton Secretary/treasurer .........................................

Randall Simon, Oberon Assistant Secretary/treasurer .........................

Dave Teigen, Rugby District 1 ..........................................................

Mark Brehm, Cando District 1 ..........................................................

Bruce Olsen, Cando District 3 ..........................................................

Russell Carlson, Jamestown District 3 ..........................................................

Judy Geier, Heaton District 3 ..........................................................

Curtis Hanson, Pettibone General Manager ............................................

Bruce Garber

Manager of Engineering ................................Seth Syverson

IT Manager ......................................................Scott Buchholtz

Operations Manager .......................................Craig Rysavy

Business Manager ..........................................Cheryl Belle

Northern Notes Editor .....................................Pat Schaffer

Nwww.nplains.com

[email protected]


LOOK UP WHEN PLACING HAY BALES!

STAY SAFE THIS SEASON!

Northern Plains Electric Cooperative reminds members to look up when working with hay bales.

• Do not stack bales near a power line or where equipment may potentially come into contact with a power line.

• Always look up when moving bales from one area to another.


Documents

North Dakota Electric Cooperative - nplains.com pages/NP_JULY2018.pdf · schedule the work and make sure your electric service is ... the cooperative’s electric rates. While the