Earth Equity News

Obama Orders Energy-Efficiency Standards. By Ben Feller, AP, February 5, 2009. "Eager to show action on the energy front, President Barack Obama ordered his government on Thursday to establish higher efficiency standards for everyday household appliances such as dishwashers, lamps and microwave ovens... Obama announced he had signed a presidential memorandum directing the Energy Department to get moving on energy standards for appliances, including a first batch he will order to be finalized by August. The fact that Obama is getting directly involved in speeding up household appliance standards underscores how much he wants to show quick, clear progress on energy -- part of a broader campaign promise to deal with economic and energy concerns all at once. Laws on the books already require new efficiency standards for household and commercial appliances. But they have been backlogged in a tangle of missed deadlines, bureaucratic disputes and litigation. In essence, Obama's intent is to say that legal deadlines must be met, with priority being given to those standards that are likely to yield the best pocketbook savings for consumers... His directive also asks the Energy Department to meet all deadlines in setting energy standards but to evaluate them in priority order and finish some ahead of schedule."