Home appliance manufacturers and energy efficiency advocates have agreed to improved efficiency standards and tax policies for refrigerators, freezers, clothes washers, clothes dryers, dishwashers and room air conditioners. This agreement could save enough energy to meet the total energy needs of 40 percent of American homes for one year and the amount of water necessary to meet the current water needs of every customer in the City of Los Angeles for 25 years. Global warming CO2 will be reduced by 550 million metric tons over the same time period, without considering the emissions reductions from smart appliances. Major home appliance manufacturers, their trade organization and a nationwide coalition of energy and water efficiency supporters have called for new national minimum efficiency standards, production tax credits for super-efficient appliances and inclusion of "smart grid" readiness as a feature of future ENERGY STAR-qualified appliances.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Energy Star program has helped improve the energy efficiency of the auto manufacturing industry, which has cut fossil fuel use by 12 percent and reduced greenhouse gases by more than 700,000 tons of carbon dioxide, according to a recent report by the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions at Duke University. The emissions reductions, which help to fight climate change, equal the emissions from the electricity use of more than 80,000 homes for a year. The report, Assessing Improvement in the Energy Efficiency of U.S. Auto Assembly Plants, affirms EPA's energy management strategy, particularly the importance of performance measurement and recognition for top performance. The report also demonstrates that the gap between top performing plants and others has closed and the performance of the industry as a whole has improved.
Today at the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Convention in Miami, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) ENERGY STAR® program announced that 84 commercial building design projects achieved the Designed to Earn the ENERGY STAR designation for 2010. These projects are intended to create fewer greenhouse gas emissions and save money on energy bills over the lifetime of the building. This year's qualifying projects came from 58 firms nationwide. The projects are intended to save more than 50,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions and more than $6.5 million in energy costs across approximately 9.4 million square feet. Over 30 of the projects attained a C02 emissions reduction of 50 percent or better, which meets industry-wide and AIA 2030 Commitment goals. The full list of projects and architecture firms can be found at www.energystar.gov/commercialbuildingdesign.
First Parish in Needham Unitarian Universalist is the first house of worship in New England to receive an EPA Energy Star label, an energy efficiency standard that certifies that they are in the top 25 percent of houses of worship in the United States. First Parish in Needham is one of just nine houses of worship in the country to receive the label. "First Parish in Needham has successfully accepted the challenge of dealing with energy issues and sets a terrific example for the many houses of worship across New England," said Curt Spalding, regional administrator for EPA's New England office. "We hope more small businesses and congregations across New England states will follow their lead and maximize energy efficiency opportunities in their own operations."
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced today that stand-alone data centers and buildings that house large data centers can now earn the Energy Star label. To earn the label, data centers must be in the top 25 percent of their peers in energy efficiency according to EPA's energy performance scale. By improving efficiency, centers can save energy and money and help fight climate change. EPA uses a commonly accepted measure for energy efficiency, the Power Usage Effectiveness metric, to determine whether a data center qualifies for the Energy Star label. Before being awarded the Energy Star, a licensed professional must independently verify the energy performance of these buildings and sign and seal the application document that is sent to EPA for review and approval. Data centers are found in nearly every sector of the economy and deliver vital information technology services, including data storage, communications and internet accessibility. Data centers use a significant amount of energy, accounting for 1.5 percent of total U.S. electricity consumption at a cost of $4.5 billion annually, an amount that is expected to almost double over the next five years.
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