Ten U.S. companies and institutions will be recognized for exemplary "combined heat and power" (CHP) projects by EPA and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) on Wednesday, Oct. 26. The organizations will be recognized in New York City at the 6th Annual
National CHP Roadmap Workshop, an event sponsored by DOE and the CHP
industry.

Of the 13 recognized projects, each meet EPA criteria for efficiency and
fuel savings and make outstanding contributions to reducing greenhouse
gas emissions from energy generation. CHP is an efficient, clean, and
reliable approach to generating power and thermal energy from a single

Contact: John Millett, 202-564-4355 / millett.john@epa.gov

(Washington, D.C.-Oct. 20, 2005) In the face of higher energy bills this
winter, EPA encourages everyone to take action in their home to be more
energy efficient. EPA recommends five places to look and practical
advice for home energy savings: sealing and insulating; heating
efficiently; changing lights; powering down home electronics; and
looking for the Energy Star on new products.

"With cold weather around the corner and President Bush's call to
conserve, small actions -- like changing a lightbulb or
weather-stripping the windows -- can benefit our wallets and our

Source boston.com

By Jeremy Rifkin
PANIC HAS set in. With the price of oil hovering at more than $60 a barrel on world markets and forecasters predicting that we will soon see oil selling for $100 a barrel or more as worldwide oil reserves dwindle, politicians and business leaders are running scared. The global economy is beginning to slow, and there is talk about a new and sustained long-term global recession -- some economists are even talking about a global depression -- that could last for decades.

We are quickly waking up to the fact that the whole world runs by oil. We are an oil civilization. We grow our food with the help of petrochemical fertilizers and pesticides. Our plastics, pharmaceutical products, and clothes are for the most part derived from oil. Our transport, power, heat, electricity, and light are all dependent on oil.

Source FutureStone, Ltd

FORT WORTH, Texas. Nationwide, home owners brace for higher utility bills as energy companies predict an increase of up to 50 percent or more for natural gas this winter and up to 24 percent or more for electricity. Despite the spike in utility costs, some Texas residents are finding themselves with extra cash on hand thanks to dramatically reduced electricity bills.
Their secret? They own homes built with insulted concrete forms (ICFs), a
building technology that is sweeping both the home and commercial construction

Source Owens Corning

TOLEDO, Ohio. According to a report released today by the Energy Information Administration, the statistical agency of the U.S.
Department of Energy, 55 million U.S. homes heated with natural gas can expect heating costs to rise as much as 61 percent this winter. Owens Corning is helping homeowners reduce the impact of rising energy prices through education about simple home-improvement projects that can play an important role in keeping families warmer and utility bills lower during the coming winter months.

Even the simplest measures can produce significant savings.

• One of the cheapest energy efficient moves is replacing old light bulbs with low energy ones.
• Another cheap way to cut bills is by stopping draughts under skirting boards and gaps in doors and windows.
• If you have had the same boiler for more than 15 years you should change it to an energy-efficient one. Condensing boilers are the most efficient and could save you around a third on your heating bills.
• You could save even more if you upgrade to modern controls so you can set the temperature on each radiator independently.

Source Dowagiac Daily News

By ERIN VER BERKMOE

NILES - The Michigan Solar Tour will be taking place in southwest Michigan on Saturday, Oct. 1, and Niles has its own stop on the tour.
The home of City Councilman Dan VandenHeede and his wife Jodie and their three children, Elizabeth, Sam and Kate, will be featured on this year's tour.

VandenHeede teaches at Dowagiac Union High School.

"The last couple of years we have gone on the tour and thought it would be nice to put our home on the tour so people can see what we have done and to promote the idea of having a solar home," VandenHeede said.

Energystar provides the following advice for saving energy:

• Replace your air filters once a month and have a contractor do annual preseason checkups on your heating system.
• Make sure all gaps and cracks, including outer walls, ceilings, windows and floors, are insulated.
• Programmable thermostats can regulate your home's temperature to use less energy when you are away.

Source: Сitizen-times.com

By Paul Clark

ASHEVILLE - With Asheville prices in the $2.50-a-gallon range, heating oil is going to cost over a $1 more per gallon than last winter, local fuel oil companies say.

Though homeowners can't do much about the price of fuel oil and natural gas, they can do something about how tightly their homes hold onto the heat they produce. Procedures range from the cheap (a $2 furnace filter) to the expensive (vinyl siding). But all pay off in the long run, by conserving energy and increasing the efficiency of both the structure and the devices that keep it - and you - warm.

Source: Fredericksburg.com

Oil prices expected to make residential heat costs too hot to handle in winter 2005

By MEGHANN COTTER

By MEGHANN COTTER

Steve Ruby's heating and air-conditioning business is hearing from a lot of people who want to beat the heat.

But it's not the summer temperatures that they are concerned about anymore, the owner of S.M. Ruby & Sons said.

As the Gulf Coast oil supply recovers from Hurricane Katrina and gas prices remain well over $2 a gallon, people are worried the cost of heating their homes this winter will burn a hole in their wallets.