Energy efficiency

The cleanest way to meet our electricity needs is by getting the most out of the energy we already use. By planning well and using today’s technology, we can cut our electricity consumption, save homeowners and businesses money and create thousands of new jobs. Improving energy efficiency lowers energy bills, eliminates the need for new power plants, increases our energy security, and puts people to work. 

Energy efficiency is a source of energy like coal, gas, or nuclear — except instead of dangerously drilling huge holes in the ground or blowing the tops off mountains to look for fossil fuels, energy efficiency allows us to use today’s technology to do more with the energy we generate. In every home, office, and factory we can prevent waste and save money by using energy more efficiently by putting to work readily available products like advanced lighting and windows that better insulate from the heat and cold.

Energy Efficiency in the Home

Lamps: Replace those old light bulbs
If every household in the U.S. replaced one outdated incandescent light bulb with a compact fluorescent light bulb (CFL), it would prevent the same amount of pollution as removing one million cars from the road.

Heating Ducts: Warm Your House, Not the Earth
If just one in ten households used current technology to upgrade their inefficient heating systems, we could keep 17 billion pounds of pollution out of the air and our lungs.

Windows: Tighten Windows and Loosen Your Budget
If all windows were as efficient as the best products now widely available in the marketplace, the average household would save $150 a year in heating and cooling costs, and reduce its carbon pollution by roughly 4,300 pounds per year.

Energy Efficiency at the Office

Office Lighting
By using the latest in commercial lighting, office buildings can reduce the energy needed for lighting by 60%, saving both energy and money.

Office Appliances that Ease Energy Expenses
Offices can reduce the energy their computers, copiers, and fax machines use by more than half with the latest in energy efficient office equipment.

Energy Efficiency In Factories

Steam Power Saves Money
Energy-producing facilities would save between 2-8% in costly fuel use if they changed to boilers using steam.  If the facilities that already use steam systems were to upgrade their plants, they could save $4 billion in fuel expenditures and keep 32 million metric tons of pollution out of our air.

Combined Heat and Power Turbine Systems Conserve Cash
By using the same facilities to generate both heat and energy, factories could improve their efficiency by a staggering 80%.  Not only would this dramatically reduce pollution, but the upgrades would pay for themselves in less than seven years by saving the facilities money. 

Energy Efficiency on Streets and Highways

Traffic Lights: Better Bulbs
Just like efficiency upgrades at home save families money and efficiency upgrades at work save businesses overhead costs, using power smarter can save your local government needed room in the budget.  Something as simple as switching to more efficient LED bulbs in traffic lights can save cities and towns as much as 50% in energy costs.

Check out or Green Tips Page for more Energy-Saving ideas!