Future of Work consortium

I try not to make predictions any more often than I have to, but here's one I'd bet a lot of money on: someday, somehow, our political leaders are actually going to make Washington DC an energy-efficient place (once they drain the swamp of all the hot air and other effluent that comes out of those government buildings).

There (finally) appears to be a growing readiness among our national leaders to make meaningful commitments and decisions about energy conservation, combating global climate change, and reducing our dependence on foreign oil. Call me crazy, but I think they actually mean it.

Just yesterday the Senate passed a bill (by a unanimous voice vote, no less!) to increase automobile fuel efficiency standards to an average of 35 miles per gallon by 2020. While some say that's not aggressive enough, at least we're moving in the right direction. Special thanks to my very own Senator Diane Feinstein for her leadership and persistence.

And there's a good story in today's San Francisco Chronicle about the "greening" of the capitol ("Dems open campaign to 'Green the Capitol'"). House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has been speaking for some time now about the need to make the Capitol building itself far more energy efficient. More importantly, she wants the federal government to become a recognized leader in energy efficiency (fancy the thought!).

The article, by Edward Epstein of the Chronicle's Washington Bureau, highlights the goal of reducing the House's energy use by 50% in ten years, and in the process making the Capitol carbon-neutral.

Maybe I'm a hopeless optimist, but I find it incredibly encouraging to hear this kind of talk coming out of national political leaders. If - if - they can do it, just maybe the rest of us can too.

Actually, I suspect we'll see more greening of corporate America even sooner, for the simple reason that it's good business. There's more and more evidence that energy efficiency saves money and produces not just a cleaner world but a more productive one as well. People work more effectively in buildings with natural light and fresh air (in fact, the recently-completed Federal building in San Francisco is the first major construction project anywhere in the last several decades to have windows that open).

I think it's worth noting the details of the report just produced by the House chief administrative officer:

Among the report's hundreds of proposals:

-- The House can become carbon neutral by the end of 2008 by buying electricity produced by renewable sources, operating its power plant with natural gas and buying offsets for some carbon emissions on the Chicago Climate Exchange.

-- Install energy-efficient fluorescent lightbulbs wherever possible.

-- Practice sustainable landscaping methods.

-- Install an E85 fuel pump and tank near the Capitol for vehicles that can burn fuel that's up to 85 percent ethanol.

-- Start a bike-to-work program and ride-sharing for employees. Study setting up a car-sharing service for employees who live near the Capitol.

-- Buy office furniture using recycled materials.

-- Hold a green expo for House members to demonstrate green products and services they can use in their offices.

-- Purchase locally grown produce when possible for House restaurants.

To read the full report about how what can be accomplished, go to: www.speaker.gov/issues?id=0023

Of course, I can't close without pointing out to anyone who's read this far that clearly the best way to reduce energy consumption is for millions of workers to work at home or in nearby "Business Community Centers(tm)" instead of getting into their individual cars - no matter how fuel-efficient they are - and driving into center cities every day. But that's another whole topic, about which I've written many times before (and will many times more).

 Posted by Jim Ware