The lights have been dimmed at the Pentagon for October as part of
federal efforts to conserve resources for Energy Action Month.
John Conger, acting assistant secretary of defense for energy, installations
and environment, said lighting levels in common areas throughout the building have
been scaled back this month to the amount used on weekends.
The change will reduce the building’s utility bill and will help to
motivate people to think about the energy they use and ways to be more
efficient, he said.
The Pentagon, which is the Department of Defense headquarters, has
25,000 occupants and runs 24/7. Its monthly utility bill is about $1.5 million,
Conger said.
Taking
Action for Efficiency
The move is in conjunction with President Barack Obama's Executive
Order 13693: Planning for Federal Sustainability in the Next Decade, in which
federal agencies are adopting more sustainable operations to reduce taxpayer
energy costs.
"We care about energy at our installations and in the field,
because we need energy in order to do our jobs in order to protect the
country," Conger said. "However, one of the dynamics that feeds into
that is we also need money to do all those things."
In these times of tight fiscal constraints and slashing budgets,
Conger said, it is especially important to be cognizant of spending, while
preserving the national security mission.
"We're past cutting fat and now we're cutting muscle, and we
see that throughout the department as the budget cuts come down," he said.
"If we can save some money without having an impact on mission, we should
do it."
Using A
Natural Resource to Cut Bills
Many of the areas where the lights have been dimmed have natural
light that comes in, Conger said. Lighting also has been scaled back in a
common area of a nearby complex, the Mark Center. By taking advantage of a natural
resource and reducing the lighting, he said, the building will save an
estimated 90,000 kilowatt-hours of energy.
"Because we have such a big utility bill, we're continuing to
look for ways to increase the efficiency of our operations, not just in the
Pentagon, but across the enterprise," Conger said.
In Conger's own office, he said, the staff is looking at no-cost or
low-cost changes to save money, such as further reducing the lighting and adjusting
heating and cooling temperatures.
"This isn't going to solve the DoD's budget problems by any
stretch of the imagination,” he said, “but if everybody saves energy in little
ways across the enterprise, it will make a difference."
Future
Steps for Efficiency
The dimming was done in coordination with Washington Headquarters
Services, which runs the Pentagon, Conger said.
The exercise is a test of what else the Pentagon can do to be more
efficient, Conger explained. Washington Headquarters Services already is planning
some changes, including using lower wattage of lighting in areas where daylight
is plentiful, Conger said.
(Follow Lisa Ferdinando on Twitter: @FerdinandoDoD)