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Did
you know?
*The Department of Energy reports
that 75% of the electricity used to power home electronics is
consumed while the products are turned OFF.
*Video game consoles consumed an estimated 16 billion kilowatt-hours
/yr. With more user-friendly power management features, we could save
approximately 11 billion kWh of electricity/yr, cut our nation's
electricity bill by more than $1 billion/yr, and avoid emissions of
more than 7 million tons of CO2 each year. -more-
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Greetings!
Wellesley residential
electricity use has grown by more than 27% since
1997! In 2008, the growth trend reversed for the second time in
more than 10 years!
The 1.6% reduction in 2008 is just shy of the 2% per year reduction
needed to achieve the Town Meeting approved goal.
In the coming months, The Green Scene will feature information and
tips covering different areas of home efficiency to help residents to
raise the bar each month and together successfully reduce town-wide
energy use 10% by 2013.
Featured opportunity - Volunteer for WMLP pilot program
Featured actions this month:
- Phantom load (energy
vampires) reduction - electricity that is wasted when the device
is "off"
- Home electronics
efficiency
Power of ... 2?! - Enjoy working on the 2 actions below
and find new ways to put your energy into action!
Scott Bender
Member, Wellesley Green Ribbon Study Committee
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WMLP pilot program
opportunity - volunteers needed
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What: WMLP pilot program When: NOW Results: 5-15% reduction home electricity
Wellesley Municipal Light Plant has teamed up with the Wellesley Green
Ribbon Study Committee to offer 25 residents and 3 municipal buildings
the installation of a new power meter from GroundedPower.
GroundedPower is a web-based solutions
provider that couples Real-Time Monitoring with a Customer Engagement
System to motivate and empower consumers to better manage energy
consumption. Below is a sample of the web interface to the home
power monitor.
To participate send email by Monday December 7, including your
full name and address to greenribbon@power-of-one.us
Read more about the program in the Townsman -more-
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Action1:
Reduce Phantom Load (Energy Vampires)
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What: Unplug/Switch
off electronics When: NOW Results:4-8% reduction in home electricity
Energy Vampires still lingering?? All of the Halloween
decorations are long since packed away,
 but many of us
still have Energy Vampires draining our electricity. There are a
wide variety of home electronics using power even when they are
off. It is very easy to eliminate Phantom Loads by using power
strips or unplugging the device. Something as simple as switching
the furnace off in May and back on in September could save enough
electricity to power your home for a few days or switching a cable box
off for 12 hours per day would have a similar effect. Turn off an
entertainment system and you are well on your way to reducing your
electricity use by 4-8%.
Green tips from Wellesley
resident Phyllis Theermann how to reduce your wasted
electricity...
Looking to save
money and energy this winter?
To reduce your usage, you need to have a better understanding of how
you use electricity in your home. If you don't know, how can you
change, right? It is easy.
Borrow a Kill-A-Watt meter from the Wellesley library
or Municipal Light Plant and get a jump start. The device will enable
you to measure the electricity (watts and/or kWh) used in your home. I
borrowed a Kill-A-Watt meter from the library and began my energy
research.
One by one, I tested every appliance in my home. I left each device
plugged in for a few hours (or a few days for a cycling appliance such
as a refrigerator;... -more-
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Action2: Purchase
Efficient Home Electronics
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What: buy efficient
electronics When: ongoing Results: 5-40%
reduction in appliance electricity
According
to the International Energy Agency switching to the best technologies
available today would save at least 40% of residential appliance
electricity consumption.
Consider
energy for the life-cycle cost of the devices that we will power for
many years to come. Home electronics vary widely when it comes to
energy use. Check the CNET Energy efficiency guide to make
educated purchases.
NY Times - Plugged-In Age Feeds a Hunger for
Electricity
"Worldwide, consumer electronics
now represent 15 percent of household power demand, and that is
expected to triple over the next two decades...
...To
satisfy the demand from gadgets will require building the equivalent of
560 coal-fired power plants, or 230 nuclear plants, according to
the agency."
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Energy
collaboration news
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Wellesley Town
government has formed a Municipal Energy Efficiency Committee to initiate
and coordinate actions to reduce Town government's carbon
footprint. The Committee has established a goal to reduce Town energy use 20% by 2013
(leading by example with double the town-wide goal!).
The
first initiative is the Municipal Light Plant's project to reduce
street light energy consumption. Completed this year -
MLP has replaced all remaining incandescent and mercury vapor
lights with high pressure sodium lamps.
Next step -
MLP will replace 91 of the Town's 552 ornamental metal halide lamps
with LED lights
These two
actions are projected to achieve an 8.2% reduction in street light kWh,
more than $24,000 annual cost savings!
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Web designer
needed
- If you have web design experience and would like to make a difference
for Wellesley
residents and organizations please consider donating some web
development time to the Green Ribbon Study Committee.
Success stories - If you were inspired last
month by the Golod family saving 1,000kWh per
year by changing the remaining 26 bulbs (mostly recessed), please share
your success story.
Send
feedback to make the Green Scene more informative for you - send email.
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 The Power of One
brings
together Wellesley
residents and
organizations to achieve long-term
reduction in energy use and carbon footprint.
Co-sponsored by: Green Ribbon Study Committee & 
Wellesley Municipal Light Plant
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