jade1 said:
OK, lets think about it through April, plan it in May, Design it in June and install the windows the first weekend in July, just in time for the 95 and humid temps, return on investment will be oh......about a week and a half.
Upgrades take time. Lets face it, Americans waste more energy than any other country on the face of the planet. If you look for examples of older, inefficient designs, you can find them. If you look for new innovative energy conserving programs, youll find them too.
Energy Management at the Walt Disney World Resort
In 1996, the Walt Disney World Resort joined forces with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to save energy by implementing the EPA Green Lights Program. Now known as the Energy Star Buildings Program, completion of this program in 1998 resulted in the electrical upgrade of more than 17 million square feet of facilities and the conservation of more than 46,000,000 kilowatt hours of energy -- enough to power Disney's Animal Kingdom during the first year of operation!
Augmenting those efforts, the Reedy Creek Energy Services Global Management team is on a mission to track energy usage across Walt Disney World Resort property, whether in a kitchen at Rainforest Cafe® or the wave pool at Typhoon Lagoon. New technology has made tracking energy consumption both easy and profitable, allowing Cast Members to monitor utility costs and consumption data on a daily basis, through an innovative intranet-based computer program called the Utility Reporting System. Building Tune-up Teams, comprised of Maintenance, Engineering, and Operations Cast Members, also use the system to fine tune facility Energy Management System settings, resulting in annual energy savings of 3 to 15 percent.
The Utility Reporting System is now used at the
Disneyland Resort in California and the Disneyland Resort Paris, which is a testament to its simplicity, low cost of operation, and value to users throughout the Walt Disney Company" says Paul Allen, chief energy management engineer, Reedy Creek Energy Services.
Solar Power Lights Road to the Future
Solar power is a form of energy derived from sunlight, and as a result, is a free and renewable source of energy that can provide valuable heat and electricity. At the Walt Disney World Resort, a solar-powered traffic light uses technology that converts sunlight to power for LED (light emitting diode) lamps used in the traffic signal. The light emitted is equivalent to that generated by a traditional 135-watt system, but requires only 25 watts. As a result, the new system is expected to reduce energy bills by approximately $150 per month. In addition, installation costs were reduced because the process did not require construction to lay power cables underground since the electricity is derived from sunlight.
LED lamps last 5 to10 times longer than traditional incandescent lamps, and batteries used to power the system are 99 percent recyclable. This system also reduces the need for fossil fuels and consequent pollution
A solar-powered traffic light installed in front of a new firehouse at Walt Disney World will benefit both the environment and the bottom line. Solar power is a form of energy derived from sunlight, and as a result, is a free and renewable source of energy that can provide valuable heat and electricity. At the Walt Disney World Resort, a solar-powered traffic light uses technology that converts sunlight to power for LED (light emitting diode) lamps used in the traffic signal. The light emitted is equivalent to that generated by a traditional 135-watt system, but requires only 25 watts. As a result, the new system is expected to reduce energy bills by approximately $150 per month. In addition, installation costs were reduced because the process did not require construction to lay power cables underground since the electricity is derived from sunlight. LED lamps last 5 to10 times longer than traditional incandescent lamps, and batteries used to power the system are 99 percent
recyclable. This system also reduces the need for fossil fuels and consequent pollution.
Well I for one am glad to read this! 
