A cursory review of news programs shows that the environment and environmental issues are on many peoples’ minds. Whether it’s issues regarding environmental priorities (green energy vs. green jobs); definitions of clean energy (does nuclear count?); public and political resistance to renewable projects (i.e. the Cape Wind project or Mojave Desert solar project); or even the science behind the entire discussion of climate change — there seems like there is little to be thankful for in the realm of clean energy these days.

Yet, there is positive clean energy news — news that we can all be thankful for this holiday season. And it comes from many sectors of our economy — from manufacturing to warehousing, from Fortune 500 businesses to small corner stores, from schools, grocery stores, farms, athletic clubs, fairgrounds, and yes, even from government buildings.

This good news comes in the form of successful deployment of energy efficiencies — the cleanest of the clean energies. Every kilowatt-hour (kWh) that is not consumed due to energy efficiency is a kWh that is not generated by our power system. Less consumption and less generation by definition mean less pollution.

Energy efficiency also decreases the cost of production and operation for companies making them more efficient and productive, and thereby more competitive in today’s challenging economic climate.

At Orion Energy Systems this Thanksgiving season, we are ever-mindful of and thankful for our customers — as they are the lifeblood of our business. Yet, we also are thankful for their commitment to environmental stewardship. Since 2001, the more than 5,000 facilities using Orion technology have:

• Retrofitted more than 800,000 million square feet of facility space;which has

• Reduced their demand for electricity by more than 475,000 kilowatts (475 MW);which has

• Reduced overall electricity consumption by more than 9 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh).

These reductions in energy use have saved Orion customers, which include 120 of the Fortune 500, more than $710 million. Furthermore, according to the Environmental Protection Agency, these savings have resulted in significant and real greenhouse gas and pollution reduction, including:

• 6 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions;
• 24,000 tons of sulfur dioxide (SO₂) emissions;
• 8,900 tons of nitrogen oxide (NO_X) emissions;
• 125 tons of methane (CH₄) emissions;
• 95 tons of nitrous oxide (N₂O) emissions; and
• 250 pounds of mercury (Hg) emissions.

These reductions are the air-scrubbing equivalent of a 1.6 million acre forest (in comparison, Delaware, the second smallest state in the U.S., is 1.59 million acres), or the removal of nearly 1.5 million cars from the road —saving on average more than 760 million gallons of gasoline (over 18 million barrels of oil) — each year.

Orion has made special efforts to recognize its customers’ commitments to environmental stewardship, and is thankful for their efforts, regardless of size or sector, as seen in the sample of customers below. (Click the company name for more information.)

High Brothers Lumber, 100,286 kWh – Energy Savings, 66 tons – CO₂ Savings

Meisel, 248,485 kWh – Energy Savings, 163 tons – CO₂ Savings

Hammink Dairy, 597-199 kWh – Energy Savings, 397 tons – CO₂ Savings

City of Milwaukee Garage, 174,555 kWh – Energy Savings, 115 tons – CO₂ Savings

Lakeland College, 102,339 kWh – Energy Savings, 67 tons – CO₂ Savings

Briggs and Stratton, 9.4 million kWh – Energy Savings, 7,448 tons – CO₂ Savings

Flexsteel Industries, 1,037,990 kWh – Energy Savings, 682 tons – CO₂ Savings

Coca-Cola Enterprises, 10.5 million kWh – Energy Savings, 63,300 tons – CO₂ Savings
In conclusion — and we cannot say this often enough — Orion is grateful to all of its customers for the patronage over the years and thankful for the opportunity to help them implement projects that deliver real results and allow them to be leaders in environmental stewardship.

Happy Thanksgiving to all!