Sen. Carper Congratulates Seaford School District on Achieving President Obama’s Energy Efficiency Goal for Buildings

School named an EPA Energy Star Top Performer for 2011; provides model for superior building energy performance and savings

WILMINGTON, Del. – Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) congratulated a local Delaware school district for leading the way on building energy efficiency in the First State and the rest of the nation. The Environment Protection Agency (EPA) named the Seaford School District as one of the top performing Energy Star Leaders for 2011, meaning the district improved the energy efficiency of its building portfolios by 20 percent or more.

Energy Star partners who demonstrate continuous improvement organization-wide, not just in individual buildings, qualify for recognition as Energy Star Leaders. Energy Star Leaders must meet one of two energy efficiency improvement milestones. The first milestone requires a 10 percent improvement in energy performance across their entire building portfolio, and subsequent recognition is given for each 10 percent improvement thereafter. The second milestone, known as “top performer,” requires the buildings in an organization’s portfolio, to perform on average in the top 25 percent of similar buildings nationwide.

“Given the tremendous fiscal challenges our government and communities face, we need to look in every nook and cranny of our budgets for savings,” said Sen. Carper. “I am proud that the Seaford School District is leading the way in the First State – and the nation – to increase its energy efficiency and save money. This Presidential initiative will continue to spark investment in energy-efficient building upgrades, saving money for taxpayers, and also helping the environment and creating good-paying jobs here at home. Programs like Energy Star Leaders, coupled with legislation like my bill, the Reducing Federal Energy Dollars Act, take crucial steps to help us start achieving better results for every energy dollar we spend – whether it’s in our state or federal governments. We have a responsibility to encourage innovation and to make sure that our nation is not only keeping up with developments in energy efficiency, but leading the way. This initiative and environmental stewards like the Seaford School District are doing just that.”

Last year, President Obama announced a nationwide call to action to improve the energy performance in buildings across the nation by 20 percent by 2020. EPA’s Energy Star program has helped these 90 leading organizations achieve the President’s goal by providing them with a proven energy management strategy, which includes a focus on ongoing performance measurement and whole-building improvement. Energy Star Leaders have cumulatively saved more than $150 million on utility bills and prevented greenhouse gas emissions equal to the electricity used by nearly 95,000 homes.

The Seaford School District was an Energy Star Leader award winner in 2007 and named a top performer in 2006. The Red Clay Consolidated School District, also an Energy Star Leader in Delaware, was named a top performer in 2008.

Complete list of Energy Star Leaders as of December 31, 2011:

http://www.energystar.gov/ia/business/leaders/Leaders_full_list_2011.pdf?2758-99c7<http://www.energystar.gov/ia/business/leaders/Leaders_full_list_2011.pdf?2758-99c7>

More about Energy Star Leaders:

http://www.energystar.gov/leaders<http://www.energystar.gov/leaders>

About Energy Star:

Energy Star is a joint program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy helping us all save money and protect the environment through energy efficient products and practices.

In 1992 the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) introduced Energy Star as a voluntary labeling program designed to identify and promote energy-efficient products to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Computers and monitors were the first labeled products. Through 1995, EPA expanded the label to additional office equipment products and residential heating and cooling equipment. In 1996, EPA partnered with the US Department of Energy for particular product categories. The Energy Star label is now on major appliances, office equipment, lighting, home electronics, and more. EPA has also extended the label to cover new homes and commercial and industrial buildings.

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