EPA Recognition Reflects Vermont’s Energy Efficiency
Burlington, VT
For the fourth year in a row Vermont’s statewide energy efficiency utility, Efficiency Vermont, has been recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) ENERGY STAR program with its Partner of the Year – Sustained Excellence award.
“The work of Efficiency Vermont that is recognized through this award is only possible because of the investment that Vermonters continue to make in energy efficiency. Efficiency Vermont and the many professionals we partner with every day to deliver first-rate services and products to Vermont customers all share in this award” said Rebecca Foster, Director of Efficiency Vermont. “ENERGY STAR has been a consistent component of our work over the years, helping provide Vermonters with confidence in the programs, services, and products that bear the ENERGY STAR mark.”
EPA specifically cited the Efficiency Vermont Marketplace as one of the several 2018 initiatives that helped garner the distinction. Launched prior to the holiday shopping season in fall of 2018, the Efficiency Vermont Marketplace is an online tool that helps Vermont shoppers quickly and easily research efficient products in a variety of categories including electronics, heating and cooling, home and office, and laundry. Developed in partnership with Enervee -- a leading company in ranking products based on energy performance to engage cusotmers in making energy-smart purchases -- the online search tool gives shoppers instant information about available Efficiency Vermont rebates, a one-click connection to Efficiency Vermont’s “Find a Retailer” tool, energy savings information, price comparisons, and consumer reviews.
“I applaud the 2019 ENERGY STAR Award Winners,” said EPA Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation Bill Wehrum. “Their innovation and leadership enhance America’s economic competitiveness. Reducing costly energy waste improves air quality and public health while protecting the environment.”
The cumulative, lifetime energy savings from Vermonters’ energy efficiency investments made from 2000 through 2018 will save $2.4 billion in energy costs and avoid 11 million tons of CO2 – the emissions-equivalent of removing 240,000 cars from the roads for 10 years.
EPA presents the Sustained Excellence Award to partners that have already received ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year recognition for a minimum of two consecutive years and have gone above and beyond the criteria needed to qualify for recognition. Winners hail from small, family-owned businesses to Fortune 500 organizations – representing energy-efficient products, services, new homes, and buildings in the commercial, industrial, and public sectors.
For a complete list of 2019 winners and more information about ENERGY STAR’s awards program, visit energystar.gov/awardwinners.
About Efficiency Vermont
As the nation’s first Energy Efficiency Utility, Efficiency Vermont has helped Vermont avoid over 13.2 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions and has received the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s ENERGY STAR program Partner of the Year – Sustained Excellence award for the last eight consecutive years. Efficiency Vermont works with partners to help our state transition to more affordable, low carbon energy use through education, incentives, and support for our clean energy workforce. Learn more at www.efficiencyvermont.com.
About ENERGY STAR
ENERGY STAR® is the government-backed symbol for energy efficiency, providing simple, credible, and unbiased information that consumers and businesses rely on to make well-informed decisions. Thousands of industrial, commercial, utility, state, and local organizations—including more than 40 percent of the Fortune 500®—rely on their partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to deliver cost-saving energy efficiency solutions. Since 1992, ENERGY STAR and its partners helped save American families and businesses nearly 4 trillion kilowatt-hours of electricity and achieve over 3 billion metric tons of greenhouse gas reductions. In 2017 alone, ENERGY STAR and its partners helped Americans avoid $30 billion in energy costs. More background information about ENERGY STAR can be found at: energystar.gov/about and energystar.gov/numbers.
Efficiency Vermont Press Contact
Matthew Smith
Phone: (802) 540-7662
[email protected]