Los Angeles tops EPA list of cities with most energy-efficient buildings
Los Angeles has the highest number of energy-efficient buildings in the country, according to a ranking of cities by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of U.S. metropolitan areas that earned EPA’s Energy Star in 2009. EPA awards the Energy Star to commercial buildings that perform in the top 25 percent of buildings nationwide compared to similar buildings.
This is the second year for the EPA to release the Energy Star rankings, and Los Angeles topped last year’s list, too. Washington, San Francisco, Denver, Chicago, Houston, Lakeland, Texas; Dallas-Fort Worth, Atlanta and New York followed Los Angeles in the ratings. “These cities see the importance of taking action on climate change,” said Gina McCarthy, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation. “Communities from Los Angeles to Louisville are reducing greenhouse gases and cutting energy bills with buildings that have earned EPA’s Energy Star.”
In 2009, nearly 3,900 commercial buildings earned the Energy Star, representing annual savings of more than $900 million in utility bills and more than 4.7 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions, according to EPA. Since EPA awarded the first Energy Star to a building in 1999, nearly 9,000 buildings across America have earned the rating as of the end of 2009. Overall annual utility savings have climbed to nearly $1.6 billion, and greenhouse gas emissions equal to the emissions of more than 1 million homes a year have been prevented. Thirteen types of buildings can earn the Energy Star, including schools, hospitals, office buildings, retail stores and supermarkets.
View a list of the Top 25 Cities in 2009 with Energy Star labeled buildings.
