Practical Facilities Tips, News & Advice.
When patients visit a healthcare facility, they are not thinking about how many kilowatt-hours of energy the facility is using, or how the facility may be reducing its cubic feet of natural gas consumption annually. When patients visit a healthcare facility, they are thinking about the care they’re going to receive. As healthcare facility managers, […]
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced its annual “Top Cities” list, spotlighting the cities with the greatest number of ENERGY STAR certified commercial and multifamily buildings in 2021. Los Angeles leads with nearly 650 ENERGY STAR certified buildings. Close behind is Washington, D.C., with nearly 500 buildings, followed by Atlanta in third place. […]
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced a total $15.3 billion in energy savings through the Better Buildings Initiative, a public-private partnership with more than 900 businesses, state and local governments, utilities, housing authorities, and other organizations across the United States pursuing ambitious energy, waste, water, and/or greenhouse gas reduction goals and sharing their solutions. […]
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Energy (DOE) have announced the winners of the 2022 ENERGY STAR Awards. These 210 organizations, which represent the top ENERGY STAR partners, are making important contributions in support of America’s clean energy transition. They come from 37 states and span nearly every sector of the economy, including Fortune 500 […]
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and U.S. airports have launched an Airport Climate Challenge to help achieve the Biden-Harris administration’s goal of net-zero emissions by 2050. Airports can take advantage of several FAA funding programs to meet this goal, including grants for low- or zero-emissions vehicles, renewable energy production, energy assessments […]
In February 2020, the University of Pittsburgh announced its goal to go carbon neutral by 2037—13 years sooner than the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s call for global carbon neutrality. A new report, the Pitt Climate Action Plan, spells out how the university will achieve that goal through investments in clean energy, transportation, efficiency, and other areas. […]
Major retailer Target Corp. announced its most sustainable store to date, as the site will generate more renewable energy than it needs annually to operate and will test multiple innovations to reduce the building’s emissions. The Vista, Calif., store’s retrofit and new features will inform Target’s investments in new stores and remodel programs that support its […]
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that 93 U.S. manufacturing plants earned the agency’s ENERGY STAR certification in 2021. ENERGY STAR-certified plants are verified to be among the most energy-efficient plants within their industries. Together, they prevented more than 5 million metric tons of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the industrial sector, which is […]
The Biden administration has taken an important step forward to decarbonize all U.S. federal facilities, with two major agencies launching a request for information (RFI) to help meet the clean energy goal. Issued by the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) and the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA), the RFI aims to gather market information and […]
The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) announced the ranking of its annual Top 10 States for LEED, with Illinois once again topping the list and demonstrating leadership in green building. Illinois certified 3.16 square feet of building space per person under LEED in 2021. LEED is the world’s most widely used green building program and was created by […]