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Los Angeles Ranks #1 City in U.S. with Most Energy Star Building for Fifth Consecutive Year

Release Date: 03/12/2013
Contact Information: Nahal Mogharabi, 213-244-1815, mogharabi.nahal@epa.gov

In Southern California, the more than 720 Energy Star certified buildings have helped save more than $163 million in annual utility bills while preventing greenhouse gas emissions equal to emissions from the annual electricity use of more than 62,000 homes. San Francisco, San Jose, and Sacramento also made this year’s top 25.

“Through their partnership with EPA, the owners and managers of Energy Star certified buildings are helping reduce greenhouse gas emissions while saving on utility bills,” said EPA Acting Administrator Bob Perciasepe. “With Energy Star, cities across America are helping achieve President Obama’s goal to cut in half the energy wasted by our businesses over the next 20 years.”

Nationally, more than 20,000 Energy Star certified buildings across America helped save more than $2.7 billion in annual utility bills while preventing greenhouse gas emissions equal to emissions from the annual electricity use of more than two million homes in 2012.

Energy use in commercial buildings accounts for 17 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions at a cost of more than $100 billion per year. EPA continues to see an increase in buildings applying for and earning Energy Star certification each year. The cumulative number of Energy Star certified buildings has increased by more than 24 percent compared to last year, representing more than 3 billion square feet of floorspace nationwide. In 2012 alone, more than 8,200 buildings earned EPA’s Energy Star certification.

Also on this list is Washington, D.C., landing in second place with 462 buildings. Chicago has risen through the rankings each year, starting in sixth place in 2008 and increasing the number of building certified by an average of 32 percent each year. Phoenix broke into the top 10 for the first time, with 202 buildings.

Commercial buildings that earn EPA’s Energy Star must perform in the top 25 percent of similar buildings nationwide, as verified by a professional engineer or a registered architect. Energy Star certified buildings use an average of 35 percent less energy and are responsible for 35 percent fewer greenhouse gas emissions than average buildings. Fifteen types of commercial buildings can earn the Energy Star, including office buildings, K-12 schools, and retail stores.

Launched in 1992 by EPA, Energy Star is a market-based partnership to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through energy efficiency. Over the past 20 years, with help from Energy Star, American families and businesses have saved about $230 billion on utility bills and prevented more than 1.8 billion metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions. Today, the Energy Star label can be found on more than 65 different kinds of products and more than 1.4 million new homes, in addition to the more than 20,000 commercial buildings.

Complete list of Top Cities: http://energystar.gov/topcities

Data behind Energy Star certified buildings: http://energystar.gov/datatrends

More about earning the Energy Star for commercial buildings: http://energystar.gov/labeledbuildings