INL team recognized by DOE for energy saving work

U.S. Deputy Secretary of Energy Daniel Poneman has recognized a five-person team from Idaho National Laboratory with a DOE Sustainability Award for its work to save taxpayers money and reduce energy consumption at laboratory buildings.

The team -- Stephanie Austad, Kimberly Frerichs, Matthew Hammond, Christopher Ischay and Tad Pearson -- was recognized for the following work:

• Coordinating the installation of energy-efficient white roofs on several INL facilities.
• Securing INL's first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) building certification.
• Revising two building design and planning standards to include sustainability concepts.
• Moving from fuel oil to electricity for steam heating at the Materials and Fuels Complex.
• Increasing the availability and use of alternative fuels by more than 62 percent.

These and other activities resulted in annual cost and energy savings at INL of more than $1.6 million, more than one million kilowatt hours of electricity, nearly 600,000 gallons of fuel oil and about 190,000 gallons of diesel fuel.

President Obama in 2009 signed an executive order calling on the federal government to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions, and implement aggressive energy and water efficiency programs. In response, DOE established its Sustainability Performance Office to implement the goals. In all, DOE Sustainability Awards have been given to 31 teams and individuals for outstanding contributions in managing pollution, waste, energy, water and vehicle fleets.