Light the Way
by Bonnie Biocchi, Executive Director
Year over year, the Annual Lineworker Rodeo is one of the most exciting days of the year at NEPPA and this year was no exception. In fact, with over 200 people in attendance, this year’s Rodeo proved to be our largest one yet. This year we had 15 teams competing in 6 events (including several new events) and and judges did a remarkable job of keeping things running smoothly. With
20 sponsors displaying tons of gear and dozens of family and friends to cheer them on, our Lineworkers went to work and proved the value of their NEPPA training. Overall honors went to: 1
st place:
Liberty Utilities II; 2
nd place:
Middleton Electric Light I, 3
rd place,
NH Electric Co-op II and 4
th place: Braintree Electric Light. And thanks to Ben and the crew at Altec, no one went home hungry as they whipped up a fabulous barbeque for all. I am indebted to
Ken Stone,
Scott Larsen and our entire
Rodeo Sub-Committee who spent months planning this terrific event. Their energy and enthusiasm shone through!
During the Rodeo’s noontime festivities, I had the honor of presenting Special Recognition Awards to the 14 Lineworkers who participated in Light Up Navajo this year. We were fortunate to have 4 NEPPA systems (Littleton, Paxton, Sterling and West Boylston) join in the effort to bring power to the people of the Navajo Nation this past Spring. Preparations are underway now for
Light up Navajo II, (LUN II) scheduled for April 4-Jun 26, 2020. The Navajo Tribal Utility Authority (NTUA) is seeking crews to participate in this effort and NEPPA is fully supporting this volunteer initiative. We are hoping to field 32 total teams over a 12-week period. LUN II has drawn tremendous interest from our members and to date 22 utilities have expressed interest in participating. If you need more information or have questions, reach out to the office or check our website for updates.
During the week of October 14
th, members of NEPPA’s Advocacy and Reporting team will be descending on Washington to further strengthen our mission. During this “NEPPA only” fly-in, we will be meeting with Congressional delegates and staffers, members of FERC, ENR and Energy and Commerce to discuss the issues that are most important to our membership: The Capacity Market, Transmission Costs, Climate Initiatives, Hydro-Power Re-licensing, and Pole Attachments.
Closer to home, On October 23
rd, we will be hosting our General Manager’s roundtable at NEPPA to evaluate the proposed revisions to the Mutual Aid agreement. After many months work, the Mutual Aid Committee is prepared to recommend the new agreement which incorporates the valuable feedback discussed during the GM Roundtable at the Annual Conference. Please mark your calendar for Oct 23
rd from 10:30a–12p to participate in this important meeting.
As the fall season unfolds, I wish you a few moments to reflect and enjoy the beauty of the season. We are fortunate indeed to live in an area of the country where so many talented and committed people can spend their off-hours exploring the natural splendor of our region.
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Upcoming Training & Events
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Oct. 21; Nov. 4 & 18; Dec. 9
NEPPA Training Center
Littleton, MA
Year I:
Oct. 29 - Nov. 1
Year II:
Sept. 17 - 20; Nov. 5 - 8
Year III:
Sept. 24 - 27; Nov. 19 - 22
Year IV:
Oct. 8 - 11; Dec. 10 - 13
Apprentice Graduation:
Dec. 12
NEPPA Training Center
Littleton, MA
Oct. 22 - 25; Nov. 19 - 22
NEPPA Training Center
Littleton, MA
Oct. 22
NEPPA Training Center
Littleton, MA
General Manager Roundtable
Oct. 23
NEPPA Training Center
Littleton, MA
October 29-31
NEPPA Training Center
Littleton, MA
Oct. 31
NEPPA Training Center
Littleton, MA
Nov. 6
NEPPA Training Center
Littleton, MA
November 6 - 7
NEPPA Training Center
Littleton, MA
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Nov 12-15
NEPPA Training Center
Littleton, MA
***NEPPA Members use Group Code: NEPPA
Outage Management
& Emergency Communications Roundtable*
New Date: Dec 4
NEPPA Training Center
Littleton, MA
Annual Membership Meeting *
December 6
Courtyard Marriott
Nashua, NH
December 16
NEPPA Training Center
Littleton, MA
NEPPA Webinar Series:
Managing Workforce Diversity*
December 19
11:00 am - 12:00 pm
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2020 @Your-Site Online Training - Registration is Now Open!
Can’t schedule an in-person session? Take advantage of @Your-Site Online!
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For more information and/ or to donate:
Call the NEPPA office at 978-540-2200
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Thank you John Coyle and
Duncan & Allen for taking up the challenge! John graciously donated $500 to our Benevolent Fund matching campaign.
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This is not the first time Brian Evans-Mongeon from
Utility Services has stepped up to the plate to donate, Brian donated our beautiful flag pole.
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Energy & Environment: S
enate
Energy
Panel Advances 20 Bills, Collins Introduces DER Bill, D.C. Circuit Dismisses Clean Power Plan Case…
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2019 NEPPA Lineworker's Rodeo Photo Album
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As battery fires spark ongoing concerns, NFPA releases standards to address risks
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Utility Dive, September 17, 2019 - The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)
last week released a new standard
to highlight potential fire and safety hazards associated with energy storage systems (ESS).
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Burlington Electric
to help meet net zero
energy goal
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Burlington, Vermont, September 16, 2019 - Vermont’s Burlington Electric Department will take a number of actions to help the City of Burlington achieve a net zero energy goal by 2030
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NERC finds first remote hacker interference on US grid from cyberattack
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Utility Dive, September 9, 2019 -
The March cyberattack was the first time that remote hackers interfered with U.S. grid networks. The threat of a cyberattack is at an all-time high, NERC.
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Northeast Public Power Association | communications@neppa.org | www.neppa.org
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