We Have Standards You Know

Standards for determining if your home appliance is truly green, that is.

Earlier this week, The Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers joined with CSA Standards and UL Environment to develop voluntary sustainability standards for home appliances.

They hope that this will provide consumers with an "objective and practical measurement tool" in order to evaluate just how environmentally-friendly our appliances truly are.

While energy consumption is key, the groups will also employ a life cycle approach to identify and measure other significant environmental aspects.

Earlier this month the Association joined with other groups to improved efficiency standards and tax policies for refrigerators, freezers, clothes washers, clothes dryers, dishwashers and room air conditioners.

The proposed plans could save enough energy to meet the total energy needs of 40% of American homes for one year and the amount of water necessary to meet the current water needs of every customer in the City of Los Angeles for 25 years, according to the association.

Furthermore global warming CO2 will be reduced by 550 million metric tons over the same time period, without considering the emissions reductions from smart appliances.

The groups have called for new national minimum efficiency standards, production tax credits for super-efficient appliances and inclusion of "smart grid" readiness as a feature of future ENERGY STAR qualified appliances.

To learn more about this proposal click here