Intel is enjoying its perch atop the EPA's Green Power Partnership list, and rightly so.

The program calls for organizations to lower the carbon footprint of their U.S. operations by either generating green power on-site, implementing efficient power systems or purchasing renewable energy certificates or any combination of the three. In Intel's case, deriving less than half of its power from renewable sources was enough to earn it the top spot.

Here's what Intel has to say...

Our purchase of renewable energy certificates (RECs) amounts to 1.3 billion kilowatt hours of energy a year. The EPA estimates this has the equivalent effect of eliminating CO2 emissions for more than 185,000 automobiles or the electricity needed to power more than 130,000 average American homes annually.

This purchase places Intel at the top of EPA's Green Power Partnership National Top 25 list, as well as the top of the Fortune 500 Green Power Purchasers list. The Green Power Partnership program encourages voluntary green power purchases to reduce the impact of conventional electricity use.

The list provides a great snapshot of the impact renewable energy is having among U.S. businesses. In it you'll find PepsiCo, the US Air Force, Whole Foods, Cisco, Staples and NYU. It's particularly fun to scan the 100% Green Power Purchasers list, where mom and pops, houses of worship and even ski resorts mingle.