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Join us June 13 for the BWL Chili Cook-off! |
Take the Go Green! Pledge
April is the month when Americans celebrate Earth Day (April 19). It’s a perfect time to take the “Go Green! Pledge.” |
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Do you have a question for BWL Q CORNER? E-MAIL: mailto:mdn@lbwl.com FAX: (517) 702-6855 MAIL: Lansing Board of Water & Light Communications Department 1232 Haco Dr., P.O. Box 13007 Lansing MI 48901. |
Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero and BWL
The Go Green! Pledge is a simple but effective “to do” list that anyone can use to be kinder to our environment.
Some examples: At least once a week, bike, carpool or take a bus to
work. Make use of recycling programs. Re-use things like By signing the pledge, you are making a decision to actively contribute to a cleaner, greener Greater Lansing. To take the pledge, go to: www.GoGreenGoLansing.com. You may wonder: Will this really make any difference? The answer is, YES! For example, if you biked to work three times a week, you’d save $840 a year in gasoline expenses, and you’d be sending 76 fewer pounds of carbon dioxide into the air. Another great way to Go Green! is to switch to compact fluorescent lights (CFLs). If every American home replaced one incandescent bulb with an energy-efficient CFL, it would save enough energy to light more than 3 million homes. For more information about the Go Green! Pledge and other ways to be Earth-friendly, visit www.GoGreenGoLansing.com.
The Lansing Board of Water & Light is always looking for ways to lower the cost of doing business. The ultimate goal is to continue providing some of the lowest rates in the state. We have consistently heard from our customers that they don’t want to pay more to cover the cost of utilities/services that don’t benefit them. Currently, 90 percent of our customers pay their bills with cash, checks, or electronically through their own financial institutions. These payment methods cost the BWL very little to process. On the other hand, the remaining 10 percent pay their bills with credit cards – at an annual cost of more than $750,000 in additional expense to the BWL. That cost is ultimately shared by all of our customers. With those expenses in mind, we have decided that effective May 1, 2008, the BWL will no longer directly accept non-enrolled credit card payments. The BWL has arranged for a third party to accept credit card payments from those customers who still wish to pay their bills by way of credit cards, over the phone or online. A convenience fee will be assessed by the third party to process these payments. The BWL will not receive any portion of this fee. Customers enrolled in our Automatic Payment Plan will not be affected by this change. Enrolled credit cards will continue to be fee-free. However, credit cards will no longer be accepted at our drive-through and walk-up widows at the Customer Service Center, located on Haco Drive in Lansing. Additionally, an ATM has been installed, along with a telephone, to allow customers to use their credit cards in the ATM for cash advances, or to conduct an over-the-phone credit card payment. Click here for additional information about these changes. Your comments are also welcome and are encouraged. Please call our new Customer Feedback Hotline at (517) 702-7077. |
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THE HEAT IS Very superstitious, writings on the wall Very superstitious, ladders ’bout to fall
That great Stevie Wonder hit, “Superstition”, would be an appropriate theme song for this year’s BWL Chili Cook-off. That’s because our 13th annual BWL Chili Cook-off will be on June 13th – Friday the 13th. But, hey, who’s superstitious? We think Friday June 13 will be a lucky day for lots of folks. n Several chili participants are going to win trophies. n Thousands of festival-goers are going to feast on more than 1,600 gallons of chili. n One lucky individual is going to take home a bundle of cash from our “Lucky 50-50 Raffle.” n Three BWL customers will be chosen to judge the Hottest Chili division. If you think you can stand the heat, fill in the coupon below and send it by May 23. You can also e-mail us the reason why you should be chosen as a Hot Chili Judge. E-mail mdn@lbwl.com So, come on down to Lansing’s riverfront for an evening of live music, activities for kids, and a virtual river of chili. It’s $5 a person, and all proceeds go to local charities. Feel lucky? We do. |
This year, the BWL expects to reach a milestone in our commitment to replacing all of its lead service lines. We are on track to having replaced 50 percent of the nearly 13,000 lead service lines that were originally part of our water distribution system. Currently, more than 5,200 lead service lines have been replaced. Among other things, those figures mean that the BWL is AHEAD OF SCHEDULE in replacing lead service lines. Looked at another way: Of the nearly 55,000 BWL customers, fewer than 7,700 customers are still served by lead service lines. Even though the risk to customers is considered minimal, the BWL is committed to replacing all of its lead service lines. The BWL is doing as much, if not more, in lead line replacements than any other utility in the United States. Other things to note:
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Flushing water lines is the simplest, most effective thing a BWL
customer can do to minimize lead exposure from drinking water. If a
customer with a lead service line doesn’t have a filter on a faucet and
wants to use the water for drinking or cooking, run the water at the tap
for seven (7) minutes if the water has been stagnant for six or more
hours. This flushing ensures the customer will get fresh water from the
water main. n The BWL continues to provide free water filters and replacement cartridges to customers with service lines that are partially or entirely made of lead. The water filters remove at least 99.9% of lead. For more information, call our Customer Service Center at (517) 702-6006. |
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YEAH, I CAN STAND
THE HEAT! Name: __________________________________________________________________ Address: ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ Daytime phone: ______________________ Home phone: _________________________ I should be a hot, hot chili judge because: _____________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ | ||
grocery
bags and water bottles, instead of throwing them away.
Credit Card Changes
