Avista Utilities, Spokane's utilities company, is special. They actively promote an effective use of energy through special incentives and rebates for homeowners and businesses around the Spokane region. And these incentives aren't hard to achieve. They're for doing simple things that even you can see a benefit for. Things like recycling an old refrigerator, installing insulation around your home and planting a tree to shade the sun from beating down on your house earn you rebates. Tips are also readily available on their website so residents can learn more about saving money and creating a greener neighborhood. Because of these Energy Efficient Programs, customers have saved over 205 million kilowatt hours and more than 5.3 million therms of natural gas over the last three years. Now that's impressive!

See, energy efficiency isn't just about swapping out light bulbs. It's about a utilities company meeting residents halfway in a plan to promote energy use in an inexpensive, feel-good kind of way.