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Businesses Turn Energy Savings Into a Profit for the Environment

Release Date: 03/21/2006
Contact Information: Roxanne Smith, (202) 564-4355 / [email protected]

(Washington, D.C. – March 21, 2006) What do a snack food company, a car manufacturer, a building supplier and a hotel chain have in common? They are part of a select group of 67 businesses and organizations that achieved major energy savings or helped others save money. Tonight, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy will confer partner-of-the-year awards on these organizations for their accomplishments and leadership in the Energy Star program.

"From potato chips to post-it notes, our Energy Star award winners are proving that saving energy dollars just makes sense," said EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson. "President Bush and EPA are improving the nation's energy and environmental outlook – providing the next generation a brighter, healthier future."

Last year alone, Americans with the help of Energy Star, saved enough energy to power 28 million homes and reduced greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to that of 23 million cars, all while saving $12 billion on their energy bills. More than 500,000 new homes have earned the Energy Star distinction and more than 26,000 office buildings, schools, supermarkets and hotels have benchmarked their energy use.

Energy Star partners of the year, including Fortune 500 companies and small businesses, set and reached annual goals to shrink energy use. For example, a retailer reduced energy use by 25 percent in more than 1,200 of its stores and a property management firm improved energy efficiency over 22 million square feet, saving more than $2 million annually.

Energy Star was introduced by EPA in 1992 as a voluntary, market-based partnership to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through energy efficiency. Now in partnership with DOE, EPA works with more than 8,000 organizations to improve the energy efficiency of products, homes and businesses.

For more information: http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=news.nr_news or call toll-free 1-888-STAR-YES (1-888-782-7937).

The Energy Star award winners and their categories are:

Sustained Excellence
3M (St. Paul, Minn.)
Astoria Homes (Las Vegas, Nev.)
CenterPoint Energy (Houston, Texas)
David Powers Homes (Houston, Texas)
Ence Homes (St. George, Utah)
Food Lion, LLC (Salisbury, N.C.)
GE Consumer & Industrial (Louisville, Ky.)
Giant Eagle, Inc. (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
Gorell Enterprises, Inc. (Indiana, Pa.)
Nevada Energy Star Partners (Las Vegas, Nev.)
New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (Albany, N.Y.)
Northeast Energy Star Lighting and Appliance Initiative (Lexington, Mass.)
Osram Sylvania (Danvers, Mass.)
Pacific Gas and Electric Company (San Francisco, Calif.)
Pardee Homes (Los Angeles, Calif.)
Servidyne Systems, LLC (Atlanta, Ga.)
Southern California Edison (Rosemead, Calif.)
Southern California Gas Company (Los Angeles, Calif.)
Toyota Motor Manufacturing North America, Inc. (Erlanger, Ky.)
Transwestern Commercial Services (Houston, Texas)
TXU Electric Delivery Energy Star Homes Program (Dallas, Texas)
USAA Real Estate Company (San Antonio, Texas)
Veridian Homes (Madison, Wis.)
Whirlpool Corporation (Benton Harbor, Mich.)
Wisconsin Focus on Energy (Madison, Wis.)

Partner of the Year – New Homes
Anderson Homes, Inc. (Cary, N.C.)
Aspen Homes of Colorado (Loveland, Colo.)
Bosgraaf Homes (Holland, Mich.)
Bureau Veritas (Plano, Texas)
D. R. Horton, Inc. – Sacramento (Gold River, Calif.)
Energy Sense (Houston, Texas)
Guaranteed Watt Saver Systems, Inc. (Oklahoma City, Okla.)
Haven Properties, Inc. (Alpharetta, Ga.)
Segal & Morel (Bridgewater, N.J.)
Southwest Home Energy Raters (El Paso, Texas)
TexEnergy Solutions, Inc. (Irving, Texas)
Winton/Flair Custom Homes (El Paso, Texas)

Partner of the Year - Energy Management
Avista Advantage (Spokane, Wash.)
California Portland Cement Company (Glendora, Calif.)
Ford Motor Company (Dearborn, Mich.)
Frito-Lay (Plano, Texas)
Gresham-Barlow School District 10 (Gresham, Ore.)
Marriott International, Inc. (Washington, D.C.)
Merck & Co., Inc. (Whitehouse Station, N.J.)
New York-Presbyterian Hospital (New York, N.Y.)
next edge (Los Angeles, Calif.)
Save More Resources, Inc. (Grand Junction, Colo.)

Partner of the Year - Retailer
The Home Depot (Atlanta, Ga.)

Partner of the Year - Product Manufacturer
Good Earth Lighting (Wheeling, Ill.)
Lithonia Lighting (Conyers, Ga.)
Precision Entry, Inc. (Sugarcreek, Ohio)
Victory Refrigeration (Cherry Hill, N.J.)

Partner of the Year - Energy Efficiency Program Delivery
Austin Energy (Austin, Texas)
New Jersey's Clean Energy Program, New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (Newark, N.J.)
Puget Sound Energy (Bellevue, Wash.)

Excellence in Energy Star Outreach
Acme Markets, Inc. (Malvern, Pa.)
Alliant Energy/MidAmerican Energy Company (Cedar Rapids, Iowa)
Delta-Montrose Electric Association (DMEA) (Montrose, Colo.)
Energy Trust of Oregon, Inc. (Portland, Ore.)
Governor Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. and the Maryland Energy Administration (Annapolis, Md.)
Kentucky Office of Energy Policy (Frankfort, Ky.)
Lowe's (Mooresville, N.C.)
Maytag Corporation (Newton, Iowa)
National Grid (Westborough, Mass.)
Nevada Power Company - Sierra Pacific Power Company (Las Vegas, Nev.)
Sears, Roebuck and Co. (Hoffman Estates, Ill.)

Excellence in Affordable Housing
New Jersey Green Homes Office – New Jersey Department of Community Affairs (Trenton, N.J.)