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Pepco Giving Free Trees to Help Customers Save Energy

For the 10th year, Pepco is supporting the Arbor Day Foundation’s Energy-Saving Trees program by giving away more than 1,000 trees to residential customers. This initiative helps customers conserve energy through strategic tree planting. As an added benefit, according to the National Wildlife Federation research demonstrates that exposure to trees has a relaxing effect on humans, reducing stress and impacting a sense of well-being, benefits we know many customers could take advantage of as the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic continue. Starting on Arbor Day, customers can reserve one free tree per household by visiting arborday.org/pepco.

Customers can choose from a wide selection of trees, including Crape Myrtle, Red Maple, River Birch and Eastern Redbud.

In light of the COVID-19 pandemic and Stay at Home Orders in the District of Columbia and Maryland, all trees will be shipped directly to the customer’s home in a box with planting and care instructions between four and six weeks after the online reservation is completed. Tree wills be available for Pepco residential customers only. Customers who don’t have internet access can call 855-670-2771 to reserve their trees.

Through the Arbor Day Foundation’s website, customers will have the power to explore interactive tools that can help them determine the best location on their property to plant their tree for maximum energy savings benefits.

Throughout a tree’s growth period, trees have the potential to lower energy bills by 20 percent. Additionally, trees provide benefits to a community by improving air and water quality, reducing stormwater runoff, and adding to the visual appeal of a neighborhood. In fact, since 2012, Pepco customers have planted more than 18,.650 trees, removing close to 398,000 lbs. of air pollutants from the atmosphere.

In addition, Pepco is also offering 200 trees on a first-come, first-served basis to District of Columbia homeowners through the “Right Tree, Right Place” tree planting program, through Casey Trees, a D.C.-based nonprofit committed to restoring and protecting the nation’s capital’s tree canopy. District residents can request up to two trees by calling Casey Trees at 202-833-4010 text. 118. Casey Trees will send out a professional arborist to evaluate the landscape and recommend a suitable tree for the area. Once the appropriate tree is chosen, Casey Trees will come to the home and plant the tree.

As always, and especially with so many people at home due to COVID-19, anyone planning to plant energy saving trees must call 811 a few days before beginning to dig to have utility-owned underground lines marked. Taking the right steps before digging will help avoid accidental damage to underground lines that could disrupt services to surrounding neighbors and prevent potential injury from striking an underground electric, natural gas or other utility line. Every digging project, no matter how large or small, warrants a call to 811.

We encourage our customers to share a photo of themselves planting their tree or of their planted tree with us on social media, using the hashtag #PepcoPlantsTrees