{"id":123,"date":"2007-05-16T16:33:22","date_gmt":"2007-05-16T16:33:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.energyrefuge.com\/blog\/bill-clinton-and-green-buildings\/"},"modified":"2017-09-05T17:56:02","modified_gmt":"2017-09-05T21:56:02","slug":"bill-clinton-and-green-buildings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.energyrefuge.com\/blog\/bill-clinton-and-green-buildings\/","title":{"rendered":"Bill Clinton and green buildings"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"clintonIn this AP report<\/a>, Sara Kugler writes about how the Clinton Climate Initiative<\/a> is working with city government’s to improve the energy efficiency of their own buildings. One of the cool ideas is that the companies doing the work, Honeywell International Inc., Johnson Controls Inc., Siemens AG and American Standard Cos. Inc., will be guaranteeing the work, and if the energy savings are not enough to pay back the loans for the work, then these companies will fix it so that the buildings are that efficient or pay the difference. Now that’s a guarantee I could live with.<\/p>\n

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One of the ideas is painting the roofs white so that heat is not absorbed but reflected back up so that AC bills are lower. <\/p>\n

That sounds so easy. And as any roofer can tell you, it gets hot up there. And there has been a study that painting walls with titanium oxide (which is white) absorbs pollution. With cities being responsible for 80% of all greenhouse gases (hey, we all live there) and with New York as an example where the buildings cause 80% of its greenhouse gas emissions, there is a lot to save.<\/p>\n

So I say we all do this: Call your local government and ask them to paint their government building roofs white. Let’s worry about more efficient heat pumps, better windows, and all the rest for some other time. Let’s do something simple. I am all about simple. Because simple is something I know I can do.<\/p>\n

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