News Releases from Region 07

Des Moines Public Schools Receives 2018 ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year

04/02/2018

Contact Information:

913-551-7433

Environmental News

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(Lenexa, Kan., April 2, 2018) - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) are once again honoring Des Moines Public Schools (DMPS) with ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year-Sustained Excellence, in recognition for its longstanding commitment to sustainability and implementation of ENERGY STAR best practices for comprehensive energy management.

EPA and DOE are honoring 163 ENERGY STAR partners this year, including utilities, schools, Fortune 500 companies, hospitals, retailers, manufacturers, home builders, and commercial building owners and operators for their outstanding contributions to public health and the environment. These enterprises are named ENERGY STAR Partners of the Year for demonstrating national leadership in cost-saving, energy-efficient solutions. Recipients of the 2018 Partner of the Year Awards come from 35 states.

Key 2017 accomplishments by Des Moines Public Schools include:

Earning ENERGY STAR certification for 94 percent of school district buildings, with an average ENERGY STAR score of 92 across all buildings.
Spending an average of $114 per student on energy costs, significantly lower than the national average of $205 per student.
Saving more than $15 million cumulatively since 2008, preventing the emissions of more than 9,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide.
Replacing more than 23,000 fluorescent lights with LED lights, resulting in a savings of more than 910,000 kilowatt hours annually.
Decreasing site energy use by more than 128 million kilo British thermal units (kBtu) and source energy use by more than 124 million kBtu since 2009.
Purchasing more than 13,000 ENERGY STAR-certified computers for students and staff across the district.
Creating an upgraded interactive and data-centric DMPS Energy Report Card that provides insight into district-wide and building-specific energy usage.

The awards will be presented in Washington, D.C., at the Washington Hilton Hotel on April 20, 2018. EPA Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation Bill Wehrum, together with CMS Energy CEO Patti Poppe, will deliver keynote presentations.

“The 2018 ENERGY STAR Partners of the Year have demonstrated real leadership, showing how American families and businesses can save energy, save money, and reduce air emissions,” said Wehrum.

For over 25 years, EPA’s ENERGY STAR program has been America’s resource for saving energy and protecting the environment. In 2016 alone, ENERGY STAR-certified products, homes, buildings, and plants helped Americans save over $30 billion in energy costs and approximately 400 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity, while achieving broad emissions reductions.

Learn more about each of the award winner's achievements

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 EPA to deliver cost-saving, energy-efficiency solutions. Together, since 1992, ENERGY STAR and its partners have helped save American families and businesses over $450 billion and over 3.5 trillion kilowatt-hours of electricity, while also achieving broad emissions reductions – all through voluntary action.

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Join the millions already making a difference at www.energystar.gov

More background information about ENERGY STAR can be found at www.energystar.gov/about and www.energystar.gov/numbers

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