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EPA ADMINISTRATOR LAUNCHES NEW ENERGY STAR RATING TOOL FOR HOSPITALS, HONORS FIRST HOSPITALS TO EARN ENERGY STAR LABEL

Release Date: 11/15/2001
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Environmental News

EPA Administrator Christie Whitman today officially launched the newest ENERGY STAR™ energy performance rating tool -- this one for hospitals. Whitman made the announcement during a trip to Chicago where she promoted the benefits of the ENERGY STAR program as a tool to save money, energy and the environment.

With the expansion of the ENERGY STAR™ program, hospitals will for the first time be able to benchmark their energy performance against others on a nationwide scale of 1-to-100. Whitman also congratulated the first hospitals to earn the ENERGY STAR™ label:

• St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Yonkers, N.Y.
• Naval Medical Center of San Diego, Calif.
• Memorial Hospital of Carbondale, Ill.

“For the first time, hospitals can now compare their energy performance to others nationwide and are eligible to earn and display the ENERGY STAR™ for highest achievements in adopting energy efficient products and practices,” said EPA Administrator Christie Whitman. “ENERGY STAR™ is a voluntary program that makes it easy for consumers and businesses to improve energy efficiency, save money and help protect the environment by providing energy efficiency information for everything from new appliances to new homes.”

“Allowing hospitals to participate in this program will allow us to improve upon our success and have an enormous impact on our environment,” Whitman continued. “Already a few hospitals have earned this mark of distinction and I am pleased to recognize them today. I also want to thank the American Hospital Association, one of EPA’s greatest partners.”

As part of his National Energy Plan, President Bush called for increased public awareness of the ENERGY STAR™ program and its benefits to consumers and businesses. The President also called for the expansion of the program to provide the label for additional building types including grocery stores, hospitals and hotels.

Hospitals use more than twice as much energy per square foot as office buildings. In total, hospitals consume almost 50 billion kilowatt hours of electricity and spend close to $3 billion each year on electricity alone. If hospitals improved their energy efficiency by an average of 30 percent, the annual electricity bill savings would be nearly $1 billion and 11 million fewer tons of carbon dioxide would be emitted--equivalent to taking 2 million cars off the road. Whitman noted that those dollar savings can be re-invested into patient care and new technologies -- making ENERGY STAR™ good for people’s health as well as the environment.

Using EPA’s ENERGY STAR™ website, http://www.energystar.gov , hospitals will be able to analyze the energy performance of their buildings, set goals for improvement, and track their progress online using EPA’s portfolio manager. Top performers will be able to display the ENERGY STAR™ label.

ENERGY STAR™, the national symbol for energy efficiency, was established in 1992 by EPA. With help from the U.S. Department of Energy, ENERGY STAR™ is empowering consumers and businesses to protect the environment through energy efficiency. For more information about ENERGY STAR™, go to: http://www.energystar.gov or call 1-888-STAR-YES.

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