I'm sorry, but I have to differ, regardless of the 'plain meaning' of the words.
If you're talking about the part of the wire that goes from the service to the ground rod, I understand considering it as a 'grounding electrode conductor.' In that case, it can't be green or white, but it can be bare.
Yet, the wire doesn't stop there. It also goes from the transformer through the controls, and to the motors as a phase conductor. It simply can't be bare, green, or white; nor can it ever be bonded to the case. It is, in every meaning of the term, a 'hot' wire.
How can a wire be 'hot' and 'grounded' at the same time? Well, that little contradiction usually puzzles everyone the first time they run across it. IMO, it's one of those 'clever engineer tricks' that should never have been allowed, and it's long past time for them to be converted to a proper 3-transformer wye system.
