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THE CITY OF SAN DIEGO'S RIDGEHAVEN BUILDING RECEIVES THE FIRST ENERGY STAR LABEL FOR BUILDINGS

Release Date: 4/20/1999
Contact Information: Paula Bruin, U.S. EPA, (415) 744-1587 Michael Terwilliger, U.S. DOE, (202) 586-1572 Ric Grenell, City of San Diego, (619) 236-7066

RELEASED JOINTLY U.S. EPA, U.S. DOE, AND THE CITY OF SAN DIEGO

     (SAN FRANCISCO)--The city of San Diego's Ridgehaven Building, headquarters of the Environmental Services Department, will receive the nation's first Energy Star Label for Buildings from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Energy DOE).  During a special city council session, San Diego's Mayor Susan Golding accepted the Energy Star Label plaque for the Ridgehaven Building from EPA's Western Regional Administrator Felicia Marcus and DOE's Seattle Regional Support Office Director Kathy Vega.

     The Energy Star Label for Buildings is the mark of excellence in energy performance, demonstrating increased value, reduced operating costs, and environmental leadership.  Energy use at the Ridgehaven Building has been reduced by 60 percent through energy-efficiency upgrades completed in 1996 and are expected to save half a million in costs over ten years.

     "I applaud the City of San Diego and the Ridgehaven Building for being honored with the first ever Energy Star Building Label," said Energy Secretary Bill Richardson.  "Their historic efforts in energy efficiency set a new standard for cities across the nation to follow."

     The Energy Star Label for Buildings is one of the many initiatives jointly led by the EPA and the DOE under their Energy Star Program.  Energy Star is an effort to educate the public about energy efficiency and to help consumers easily identify those products that save energy.

     "San Diego and the Ridgehaven Building are to be commended for taking this common-sense step to cut pollution and save on energy costs," said EPA Administrator Carol M. Browner.  "Every year, U.S. businesses and public buildings pour billions of dollars down the drain in the form of wasted energy.  Energy efficient buildings not only can save millions of dollars, they also can help protect the health and environment of all Americans by reducing air pollution, including the pollution that contributes to global warming."

     Energy production involving fossil fuels release pollutants into the atmosphere which contribute to smog, acid rain, and global climate change.  Increased efficiency at Ridgehaven alone will reduce air pollution by more than one million pounds of carbon dioxide--the equivalent of preventing the pollution from 109 cars per year.

     "San Diego’s Ridgehaven Building sets a precedent for public and private buildings across the nation to be energy efficient and useful facilities," said Golding.

     The city of San Diego's success is the result of a cooperative effort with EPA, DOE, a team of industry experts, including San Diego Gas & Electric, the Electric Power Research Institute, and Public Technology Inc., and numerous consultants, engineers, and architects.

     The Energy Star Label is awarded to commercial and public office buildings that rank in the top 25 percent nationwide in energy performance and have an indoor environment that meets industry standards.  This new benchmark is based on an Internet tool that rates energy performance in buildings on a scale of zero to 100.  EPA and Doe have designed this new tool to compare the energy performance of office buildings by factoring in climate effects and level of business activity.  Any building manager with access to the Internet can benchmark building energy performance via the website at www.epa.gov/buildinglabel.  For more information on the Energy Star Program, which includes appliances, windows, office equipment, and home electronics, see http://energystar.gov or call Michael Stenburg, U.S. Regional Energy Star coordinator, at (415) 744-1182.