While almost everyone who has purchased an appliance in the last 10 years is aware of the Energy Star label, many don’t realize that Energy Star also has a robust program designed to help buildings become more energy efficient. Within that group, Energy Star has an entire team dedicated exclusively to working with faith communities. In fact, Energy Star Congregations is one of the fastest growing sections of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Energy Star Program.

The Energy Star label was introduced in 1992 and is a market-based strategy that, without regulation, works with a variety of groups — including consumer product manufacturers, home builders, small businesses, major corporations, schools, hospitals and congregations — to make energy efficiency a high-return financial investment. Using less energy not only saves money, but it also protects America’s natural resources. Because almost half of the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions come from buildings, reducing energy consumption in the places we worship, shop, study and play helps us become environmental stewards dedicated to keeping the world safe for future generations.

For example, if America’s houses of worship – totaling more than 300,000 – cut energy use by just 10 percent, it would result in the following:

• Nearly $200 million saved – money which could fund missions and other priorities.
• More than 5.4 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity available, without additional cost or pollution.
• More than 2 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions prevented. That’s equivalent to the emissions of about 400,000 cars, or the planting of half a million acres of trees.

Most congregations can cut energy costs by up to 30 percent by investing strategically in efficient equipment and improved maintenance. It can be as simple as a weekend of easy fixes performed by a group of volunteers, or it can be more ambitious, such as replacing light fixtures, upgrading heating and air conditioning systems, or adding better insulation and windows.

The need to save money in the face of rapidly rising energy costs is one of the motivations for congregations to examine energy usage and take action to reduce it. Also, many congregations want to be good stewards of natural resources and help prevent pollution. Because the faith community is highly influential and can help educate its members about energy efficiency at home and in the workplace, Energy Star Congregations provides free tools and resources to make energy savings a priority.

By motivating Americans to become more thoughtful stewards of energy resources, and by considering the pollution caused by inefficient energy use, church leaders can play a vital role in the effort to safeguard the environment for future generations. In fact, Evangelicals and an array of other religious groups made headlines last year by recognizing global warming as an important religious issue. The vast majority of scientists are certain that human activities are changing the composition of the atmosphere and that the increasing concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere will dramatically change the earth’s climate.

One thing is certain: Energy efficiency is a solution. It is a way to help preserve our life-support systems with the added benefit of saving money for your congregation. The question is where to begin. One easy step is to visit the Energy Star Congregations’ Web site at www.energystar.gov/congregations. There’s a free monthly e-newsletter you can subscribe to that can help keep you up-to-date on energy-efficiency technology and other news about managing energy costs. There’s also a guide called “Putting Energy into Stewardship,” which spells out ways to get started on various energy-efficiency projects. One of that guide’s recommendations is to consider beginning your energy-efficiency upgrade with a lighting project.

Nearly three quarters of the energy -efficient improvements made by congregations in the Energy Star network are done in the area of lighting, which often provides quick savings and immediate improvements in lighting quality. Reducing wasted heat from inefficient lighting can also reduce cooling costs. Your church can have excellent lighting while saving on your electric bill. On the Energy Star Web site and in the guide, you can examine the options and features of energy-efficient choices, such as compact fluorescent lamps, T-8 or T-5 fluorescent tubes with electronic ballasts, exit signs with light-emitting diode (LED) technology, and sensors.

Heating and air-conditioning (HVAC) is another potential starting point for congregations because these systems typically account for 39 percent of the electric energy used in commercial buildings in the United States. Consequently, almost every congregation has the potential for significant savings through improving its control of HVAC operations and by improving the efficiency of its system. Purchasing a new system may not be realistic at the moment; however, savings can be realized with proper control and maintenance of your existing system. The HVAC section of “Putting Energy into Stewardship” can walk you through the steps you can take and the options available to you, even on a limited budget.

Assessing and tracking the energy performance of your facility can also be critical to controlling costs. Energy Star software called the Portfolio Manager can help you streamline your energy and water data, and track key consumption, performance and cost information in a password-protected file. (There is free online training for, and access to, this software on the Energy Star Web site.) You can also track multiple energy and water meters for each facility; benchmark your facilities relative to their past performance; view percent improvement in weather-normalized source energy; monitor energy and water costs; easily generate annual reports on your utility use, savings and reduction of global-warming emissions; and, if you choose to, easily share your building data with others inside or outside of your organization.

Jerry Lawson is the national manager of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Energy Star Small Business and Congregations Network. For more information, visit www.energystar.gov/congregations.