Attention federal employees!

When people complain about the way the government operates, usually nobody knows how to fix it better than those who are caught in the eye of the storm.

Now, federal employees are welcome to share their ideas and voice their opinions in the GreenGov challenge.

GreenGov is part of President Obama's signing an executive order on Federal Sustainability- where the federal government commits to leading by example and building a clean energy economy based on how it operates.

The GreenGov website allows you to submit your ideas and suggestions directly. Some of these ideas will be presented later as agencies are building their environmental plans and long-term strategies.

What suggestions do you have to make your agency more efficient?

Even if you're not a federal employee- how has your company improved its carbon footprint?

**Colleen is losing sleep and years off her life because of Red October: GO PHILLIES!**

Our guest blogger today is Colleen Blessing, who works on the energy statistics website at the Energy Information Administration.   

When I think of October, pumpkins, ghosts, and candy come to mind.   But I’m guessing most of us don’t conjure up thoughts of coal, oil, and electricity in our trick-or-treat bag.  

What?  October is about more than just candy and Halloween?  Yep, October is Energy Awareness Month!   

Ever since the Presidential proclamation in 1991, States, organizations, schools and citizens have used October to promote public understanding of energy and the wise and efficient use of that energy.  The theme this year is A Sustainable Energy Future:  Putting All the Pieces Together. 

But how do we put all the pieces together if we don’t even know what all the pieces are?  It’s like when you are doing a jigsaw puzzle that’s missing pieces—you just can’t see the whole picture.  Well, it’s the same for energy.  Most of us need to learn about more pieces of the energy puzzle to better understand the big picture.

We all need to be more aware of our use of resources, where our fuel comes from, and how energy affects our economy and the environment.  Gosh, it seems like energy is in the news every day.  Some of the topics are confusing.  We think we should understand, but we really don’t.

Do you know what biofuels are?; what renewable energy incentives are out there?; where our oil imports come from?

So check this out: To celebrate Energy Awareness Month, the U.S.  Energy Information Administration just launched a basic energy encyclopedia.   It’s bite-sized articles, in simple English, on all kinds of energy topics, with graphs and links to more information.  This new energy resource has everything from an energy conversion calculator, to where emissions come from, to why our heating oil gets dyed red! 

Did you know oil didn’t come from dinosaurs?  Did you know that hydrogen is made from water? 

Does October make you think of crunchy leaves, chilly Fall sweater weather, and heating bills?  Find out about heating fuels. 

Energy facts—almost as good as Halloween chocolate…and better for you!

Our guest blogger today is Colleen Blessing, who works on the energy statistics website at the Energy Information Administration.   

We all think a little about gasoline, because that’s a type of energy we actually buy, but many of us probably don’t understand much about gas prices except that they go up and down a lot. 

Do you know which country we get the biggest share of our oil imports 
from?  Answer:  It’s Canada, and almost half of our oil imports come from the Western Hemisphere.  You’re not alone if you got the wrong answer:  More than half of the people we surveyed recently either didn’t know or guessed Saudi Arabia or Iraq.

When you click the remote and the TV comes on, do you ever think about the electricity you’re buying to make it work or even where that electricity comes from?  If you’re like me, energy is sort of just there.  It’s on the stove and in the plug, but I don’t really think about it until there’s a power outage or until my bills are really high.  But where does electricity come from?  About half of the electricity in the United States is generated by burning coal! 

So, seeing as how it’s back-to-school time for kids, maybe some of us adults could also learn an interesting fact or two! 

And have I got a source of energy information for you!  In the category of “wow, I didn’t know the government did that,” at my high school reunion (I won’t mention which one), I amazed people by telling them I work at a government statistical agency that produces policy neutral energy data—independent of spin or advocacy.  They thought the government should do that, but they didn’t know that it actually did!  The Energy Information Administration prides itself on collecting and giving the public facts about energy that they can believe in. 

Biofuels mostly refers to ethanol and biodiesel, liquid fuels used for transportation.  They are made from things like corn and animal fat.  Did you know that Henry Ford’s original automobile, the Model T, could run on either gasoline or ethanol?

Renewable energy sources include water, the sun, geothermal, biomass and wind.  Did you know that most renewable energy is used to produce electricity?  China leads the world in renewable energy use for electricity production, but the United States is in second place.  

Do you think yellow cake is just to eat?  In fact, the term also is another name for uranium oxide, the fuel used by nuclear power plants.  Fun and Games can help you learn more energy terms.  If you’re ready to graduate to data and analysis, you can find lots of information on the Energy Information Administration website.

Start learning about energy!

I think there’s something wrong with our water heater. Over the last few weeks I’ve noticed a change in the amount of hot water in the house…especially in the evening when it’s bath time for the kids.

I hate it when things break, because I still have so much to learn about home repair. Of course I’ll have the plumber come out and take a look, but I expect to hear that I need a new water heater. I’m not exactly sure how old this one is, but I know that the warranty has expired and what do I know about buying a water heater? Nothing.

I’ve learned that buying a major appliance requires a lot of homework. You really have to think about the features that you need before going to the showroom, because all those shiny new appliances can distract you from thinking about getting the appliance that has all the features you need without paying for things you don’t need.

I always shop for appliances that are EnergyStar rated, that’s always the first thing on my list. Sometimes you can even find tax rebates in your area when you buy EnergyStar appliances. Too bad there are no water heater rebates available for me. It’s not free, but I like the unbiased appliance advice from Consumer Reports.

All I know is that I’m going to do the research and figure out what water heater is right for my family before the old one breaks completely and we’re dirty and there isn’t a clean dish in the house. Who needs that kind of pressure?

Last week we filled the home heating oil tank in preparation for the cold weather. We got 435 gallons at $3.60 a gallon. Payment due upon delivery – swoon. What’s up with that?

There are a lot of factors that determine the price of home heating oil. Even when the price of crude oil is stable, it’s typical for home heating oil prices to rise in the winter months when you need it the most. It’s that old supply and demand thing from Economics 101.

We don’t have the furnace cranked on yet, but already we’re thinking of things we can do to save a few bucks and increase the energy efficiency of our home this winter. We’ve got some old, old windows in our old, old house and I think that the cost of fuel this winter is going to be enough to push us into replacing them with modern, energy efficient windows. I’ll actually clean the radiators, which, um…hasn’t been done in a while. We’ll have the furnace cleaned and the filters replaced so it’s running in tip top shape and we’re definitely going to be keeping the temperature a few degrees cooler this year. We’ll just have to break out the sweaters and fuzzy slippers and curl up with the warm kitties. I read in Consumer Reports that by turning your thermostat down between 5 and 10 degrees at night can reduce your heating costs by 20 percent. That’s pretty impressive. If you’re away from the house during the day it’s also a good idea to turn the heat down while you’re gone. If you have trouble remembering to turn your thermostat down, some people find that programmable thermostats are helpful.

The cost of heating the house this year will definitely be a burden, but we’ll make it. If you’re worried that you’re not going to be able to afford to heat your home, you should contact your state coordinator for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (also known as LIHEAP).