Member Spotlight: Bonneville Environmental Foundation
- Columbia-Willamette Clean Cities
- Oct 15
- 2 min read
Founded in 1998, Bonneville Environmental Foundation (BEF) is a 501c3 nonprofit based in Portland, Oregon that focuses on the nexus between water, energy and carbon reduction.
BEF includes teams devoted to:
● Enhancing and restoring watersheds regionally, nationally and internationally
● Working with businesses to improve water quality and water quantity
● Developing curriculum and supporting teachers to provide K-12 education related to the electrical grid
● Marketing environmental commodities, such as Renewable Energy Credits (RECs), carbon credits and Water Restoration Certificates (WRCs)
● Developing renewable energy and transportation electrification projects
Over the last twenty-five years, BEF has developed expertise and experience in scoping and building distribution-scale renewable energy projects in partnership with utilities, public agencies, Tribes, non-profit organizations and cooperative businesses.
Over the last five years, BEF has expanded its services to encompass zero-emission transportation systems, including electric vehicles, hydrogen-powered vehicles and the infrastructure to fuel them.
BEF offers partners:
● technical assistance
● grant-writing support
● project development
● project management
Recent highlights include:
● Completing a 1MW community solar project at the Portland International Airport in partnership with the Port of Portland and Verde
● Partnering with the Blackfeet Tribe in Montana to complete a community solar project that benefits a tribal school as well as individual tribal households
● Supporting the Hood River County School District’s MOVER project at Wy’East Middle School, which incorporates a solar + battery storage microgrid with bi-directional EV charging using several electric vans and electric school buses
● Partnering with Forth Mobility to lead the development of EV car share programs in Oregon and Washington
● Collaborating with ZEV Co-op to develop shared electric mobility hubs for areas of Washington and Oregon.
BEF is uniquely positioned to help partners develop distributed electricity generation together with charging or fueling infrastructure to provide opportunities for pairing zero-emission fleets with clean, local energy. Incorporating on-site energy production with zero-emission fleets also offers opportunities to investigate microgrid applications for grid hardening and resilience.
Reach out to BEF for technical assistance and to discuss scoping new projects.
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