energy efficiency

Sam Pulcrano, Vice President, Sustainability, United States Postal Service (USPS) is interviewed about sustainability initiatives at the US Postal Service, including recycling, energy efficiency, and the new business opportunities sustainability brings.

New national standards could bring down cost of LED lights drastically.

PNC and real-estate developer Vornado/Charles E. Smith are in a joint venture to build the first Platinum-level certified, green building in Washington, D.C. The 12-story building will adhere to the U.S. Green Building Council LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) standard.

By fitting energy efficient windows to your home you can cut heat loss by up to 74%, reduce your energy bills by 20% and considerably cut your carboon footprint.

While we certainly need a saner, smarter federal energy policy (and hopefully we will get one in the next government cycle), you can start slashing those energy bills today. Energy conservation is mostly common sense, yes, but sometimes we can all use a few reminders.

Most people simply do not realize how effective energy efficiency is in the fight against global warming and rising energy cost. More can be done for the environment by simply increasing the efficiency of existing homes and building than by removing all of the automobiles and planes in the entire United States. The following list is my top ten energy efficiency techniques and products which I have determined to be the most cost effective and worth while things to do in any home.

I cut my energy bill in half since I bought my house 10 years ago. The first year I lived there my energy bill was over $1400 per year for my all electric house. I got it down to about $700 two years ago before the price of electricity jumped 20% in January of 2007.

I am constantly looking for new ideas to cut energy costs. Here is a list of the methods I have used to achieve this. Everything I have done so far has been simple and low cost solutions that I could do myself.

Now that summer is here, electric bills are skyrocketing with the heat. Air conditioners are coming on by the millions in an effort to cool down. Add that to the electrical appliances, televisions and other electronics that consume power and your electric bill soars. Here are some tips to reduce those costs.

BMW Group is working on innovations to downsize driving emissions and fuel consumption. The thermoelectric generator has been developed to enhance thermal and energy management in order to further reduce the CO2 emissions generated by BMW powertrains.

Truck stop electrification is boosting fuel efficiency and minimizing dependence on foreign oil from idling trucks.

Gas prices are sky-high and people are hurting. Is it market speculation, tight supplies or the first throes of peak oil? And, if it’s the latter, how can civilization survive?

Well, residents of the small Alaskan capital of Juneau are showing us how. Following an April 16 avalanche that severed the city’s main power lines, Juneau found itself forced to cut its energy calories big-time literally overnight. It was that, or face energy bills double or triple or many times more than the month before. The good news: society didn’t collapse.

Officials from Third Sector New England describe the LEED-certified green renovation of a historic, 19th Century building that houses offices of a variety of community non-profit organizations. They describe the opportunities and challenges in renovating such an old structure and keep it green.

John Mizroch, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary at the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Department of Energy (DOE),  discusses the various projects underway within EERE, including researching and developing the use of biomass such as switchgrass and zero energy homes and buildings. He also explains how improving energy efficiency in buildings and furthering development of lithium batteries for vehicles is important for the United States' national security.

If you think the virtual, online world helps reduce energy consumption in the real world (a topic we’ve touched on before here at Green Options Media), think again: a new study by management consulting firm McKinsey & Company provides scary insights into how Internet computing is devouring more and more power and spewing out more and more greenhouse gases.

Oakland, California-based architect Michelle Kaufmann has made a career of promoting green homes and green communities through her company, Michelle Kaufmann Designs. But if you’re not in the market for a new house, she still has some pretty cool tips for greening your home on the cheap.