Environment Oregon supports strengthened appliance efficiency standards

John Ammondson

Environment Oregon is a statewide environmental advocacy organization working for clean air, clean water and open space. We support House Bill 2062 because establishing minimum efficiency standards for our appliances will save energy, reduce pollution and lower utility bills. 

Reducing energy waste is one of Oregon’s best weapons in the fight against climate change. After last year’s devastating and destructive wildfires, which caused several of our cities to break records for worst daily air quality, it is clear that we are already seeing the impacts of climate change in our state and across the country. Using energy inefficiently only exacerbates those issues as it increases pollution in our air and water, costs Oregonians money and threatens our ability to power our energy systems with 100 percent renewable sources.

One practical solution to energy waste in Oregon is to establish minimum energy efficiency standards for our appliances and plumbing fixtures to ensure that they are not needlessly wasting energy and water. House Bill 2062 would set or update standards for 10 products, including residential showerheads and commercial steam cookers. These standards would save Oregon tens of thousands of dollars and prevent tens of thousands of tons of greenhouse gas emissions from entering the atmosphere, according to the Oregon Department of Energy. 

Updating appliance efficiency standards in Oregon is a commonsense way to reduce energy waste and progress us towards a greener future, and it’s one that we have already started to take advantage of. Over the course of almost two decades, we have set minimum energy-saving requirements for products from televisions to illuminated exit signs. We hope that Oregon will continue to take advantage of the cleanest form of energy there is: the energy we never use in the first place. 

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John Ammondson

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