The Philadelphia public school system is in the midst of one of the
largest and most contentious school reform processes ever in the United
States. At the same time, one school program is looking to expand.
Over the last two years, 17 Philadelphia schools have taken part in
a "green school" environmental initiative. Organizers are
looking to raise that number this fall. Brad Linder has more.
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Knowledge saves power.
Saving energy can be a snap, if you know what to look for.
July 19, 2002
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By Dan Simon
The Green Schools program featured in Brad's story is helping Philadelphia
save energy at the academic level, plus motivating young children
to look for ways to save energy. A couple of other efforts are trying
to improve energy efficiency for low-income residents and small businesses.
The Weatherization Assistance Program, a federal effort administered
at the state level, helps low-income dwellers that meet financial
ceilings make their homes more energy efficient. The effort, which
will spend $14.8 million in the state this fiscal year, begins with
an examination of a dwelling to find the best ways to make the home
more energy efficient.
"We will probably serve a little over 4,400 buildings this year,"
said Elizabeth Cahall, program manager, for the U.S. Department of
Energy Weatherization Assistance Program in Pennsylvania. "An
eligible residence can be a single family home, or a multi-family
home, it could even be an apartment building if a large part of its
occupancy is eligible."
One of the first things the audit checks for is air leaks. Heating
or cooling room air only to have it be replaced by air from the outside
is wasteful. Simply sealing the house better can provide an improvement
in a home's energy efficiency without costing a fortune.
"We also do CO2 testing to make sure that's not going to be a
concern once the house is better sealed," Cahall said.
The audit also checks other likely spots for improvement.
"Generally it's the heating system or insulation," she said.
"Most times when we go out, that's what needs to be done."
Another organization, Citizen Power, a Pittsburgh based advocacy group,
focuses on helping small businesses become more energy efficient.
They also perform an energy audit and try to help businesses identify
ways of reducing their energy use. The service isn't free, but state
and private funding offset at least some of the expense.
"We can offer a fairly low cost service," said David Hughes,
the group's executive director. "A business can usually recoup
their investment in about three to five years."
In some cases, the need for an energy audit can be pretty obvious.
"We just did an audit recently on a delicatessen that was using
normal incandescent lighting," Hughes said. "This is a very
expensive form of lighting and it puts out a lot of heat.
"Right under these lights was the compressors they were using
to keep their meat and soft drink cases cold. So you had the compressors
working overtime to counter the heat put out by the lights. Everything
was working at cross purposes."
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