BATTLE OF HI EPA's NATIONAL BUILDING COMPETITION ENERGY STAR The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is once again hosting a national competition among commercial buildings to save energy and fight climate change. Contest participants will battle it out and work off the waste through improvements in energy efficiency with help from EPA's ENERGY STAR program. The finalist that sheds the most energy waste will be recognized as the winner. WHO COULD APPLY? ENERGY STAR partners could nominate one or more of the facilities they own or manage. Any type of commercial building is eligible for the competition, as long as it has an active ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager account that includes energy use data from September 1, 2009 to pres- ent. Organizations must use Portfolio Manager to benchmark and share their energy data with EPA. HOW DOES IT WORK? Teams from 245 buildings are participating in the competition. Partici- pants will benchmark their building's monthly energy use with EPA's Portfolio Manager tool, make improvements to their building's energy performance, and share their progress. The competition will compare a building's EUI between two 12-month- period ending dates: 8/31/2010 and 8/31/2011. The competitor that dem- onstrates the greatest percent-based reduction in weather-normalized energy use intensity (EUI) across these two periods will be recognized as the winner in November. For example, last year's winner, Morrison Hall, began the competition with an EUI of 213 as of 08/31/09. At the end of the next twelve month period, 8/31/10, the building had an EUI of 137. This equates to a 35.7 percent reduction, which resulted in a first place finish. In July, to mark the midpoint of the competition, EPA will also announce the Top Contenders in each building category who has reduced its energy use the most as of the midpoint of the competition. WHAT WILL HAPPEN DURING THE COMPETITION? The ENERGY STAR website will feature a visual gallery with profiles of all 245 buildings in the competition. In addition, a live Twitter feed from all contestants will help viewers stay up-to-date with their activities. Throughout the competition, the teams will receive encouragement from the competition's celebrity spokesperson, John Corbett, who will provide support and tips for saving energy by way of periodic videos posted on the competition's website and several media appearances. The 2011 ENERGY STAR National Building Competition spokesperson is provided by jcpenney, EPA's co-sponsor for these events. Finally, contestants and audience members can share energy-saving tips and get their questions answered via a competitor forum hosted on the ENERGY STAR Facebook page. Last year's competitors found the peer-to- peer sharing to be a valuable aspect of the competition. WHO IS COMPETING? Teams from 245 buildings are competing, including: 103 office buildings 62 K-12 schools 12 medical office buildings 10 hospitals 7 retail stores 6 banks 5 houses of worship 5 courthouses 3 dormitories 3 hotels 3 warehouses 1 data center and 25 other building types, including a library, a fire station, university build- ings, museums, a convention center, and a performing arts center. The competitors hail from 33 states and the District of Columbia. KEY DATES Official Launch May 2 EPA Announces Top Contenders July 27 EPA Announces Winner November 2 ABOUT ENERGY STAR ENERGY STAR is a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Program helping businesses and individuals fight climate change through superior energy efficiency. For more than a decade, EPA has helped thousands of organizations set energy performance goals, measure and track progress, and earn recognition for their efforts. Watch the battle unfold at www.energystar.gov/BattleOfTheBuildings ENERGY STAR is a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Program helping businesses and individuals fight climate change through superior energy efficiency. Learn more at energystar.gov. ENERGY STAR ------- |