US

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has passed new legislation banning businesses from wasting energy by leaving doors open while the air conditioning is on.

Many shops and businesses in New York leave their doors open and blast out cool air from their air conditioning systems to entice customers inside.

But the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) estimates that businesses are wasting around $1000 and a ton of CO₂ over the course of a summer by leaving doors open and air conditioning on. The practise wastes an estimated 20-25% of a premise’s air conditioning.

“The innovative bill… will require New York City businesses to keep their doors closed to conserve energy, curb air pollution and reduce the demand on our overstressed power grid,” said Eric A. Goldstein of the NRDC in a statement.

“This practice is foolish - it inflates these stores’ electric bills and it puts city neighbourhoods at an increased risk for blackouts,” he added.
Goldstein urged other US cities to follow New York’s example on energy efficiency.

For further information:
www.nrdc.org/media/2008/080903.asp