CHURCH WINS STAR FROM HIGH AUTHORITY

"Energy Star" label graces churches for efficiency
Jay Lindsay, July 4, 2010 (AP via OneNewsNow)

"…First Parish Church in [Needham,] Massachusett… holds 18th-century timber in its walls and displays proof of its 21st-century energy efficiency with an "Energy Star" plaque by the door.

"Energy Star status, more commonly associated with dishwashers and refrigerators, is now available to houses of worship as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency looks to lower energy use at thousands of congregations nationwide…[N]ine congregations in the nation [now have] the designation…"

click thru for more on the Energy Star "Green Your Congregation" program

"Among [First Parish’s $3.3 million-dollar expansion and renovation ] upgrades: temperature controls for each room so energy isn't wasted in areas that aren't being used; a ventilation system that adjusts to the number of people inside by measuring the carbon dioxide being exhaled; new insulation in the meeting house walls, which are partly supported by beams from the church's original 1774 building…[After the upgrades, its utility bill fell from $20,000 to $12,000 in a year]…

"As churches consider new efficiency upgrades, the EPA hopes they tap into the same ancient religious principle - good stewardship of the earth - that drove First Parish…The United States has an estimated 370,000 houses of worship, nearly the number of its K-12 school buildings."

click thru for more on the Energy Star buildings program

"Some buildings seem primed for big improvement, such as the stately churches with high ceilings and leaky windows that are common in buildings in New England town squares. But Michael Zatz, EPA Energy Star commercial buildings manager, said older churches aren't necessarily far less efficient than newer buildings. Instead, he said, focusing on churches can have broad impact…[EPA] just began awarding the Energy Star label in October. Before then, a periodic federal building survey hadn't reviewed enough houses of worship to allow the EPA to draw up Energy Star scores for that building type…

"So far nine congregations from Alabama to Michigan have won the label. Variables such as a building's size, location and energy use over a year are plugged into a formula. The building's actual energy usage is then compared to what the formula predicts it will use. If it's more efficient than 75 percent of similar houses of worship, it's eligible for the Energy Star label. A licensed engineer must also verify the numbers…"