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Charlotte has inched up to 14th place nationally for its number of Energy Star-certified buildings, the Environmental Protection Agency said Tuesday.
The 21-year-old Energy Star program certifies energy-efficient buildings and products, with the goal of reducing greenhouse gases. It’s saved consumers $230 billion on utility bills, EPA says, and prevented the release of 1.7 billion metric tons of emissions.
Charlotte has crept up the list since 2009, when it ranked 22nd in the U.S. for Energy Star buildings. The city now has 133 certified buildings that the agency says save $15.2 million a year.
Commercial buildings have to perform in the top 25 percent of similar structures nationwide to be certified. Those buildings, on average, use 35 percent less energy than typical buildings.
City officials cite as local energy-efficiency efforts the Envision Charlotte campaign in uptown and the Power2Charlotte initiative focused on city operations and community project.
