EERE Kicks Off Old Refrigerator Recycling Effort

August 27, 2008

WASHINGTON, D.C. — On August 25, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) unveiled The Art of Recycling: The Coolest Show in Town, a special exhibit at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C. Students, institutions, utility companies, private organizations, and individual artists will feature old refrigerators transformed into artistic displays as part of DOE's ENERGY STAR® Recycle My Old Fridge Campaign. The exhibit runs from August 25 - September 2.

"This event allows participants to express their creativity while bringing attention to the millions of wasteful refrigerators still in use," DOE Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Alexander "Andy" Karsner said. "An easy way for Americans to lower their electricity consumption would be to recycle that old second refrigerator or freezer, or to replace their current unit with a new ENERGY STAR unit."

Up to 50 decorated refrigerators will be on display, and exhibition visitors can vote on a favorite model. A panel of judges will select the top three entries based on the following criteria: coolest; best use of recycled materials; overall creativity; and best portrayal of the campaign theme - The Art of Recycling: The Coolest Show in Town. Winners will be announced on September 2.

If Americans replaced all pre-1993 refrigerators with ENERGY STAR models, the saved energy could generate enough power for more than 8.1 million homes yearly and save the consumers more than $4.7 billion. ENERGY STAR is a joint U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) program, formed in 1992 as a voluntary, market-based partnership that seeks to reduce air pollution through increased energy efficiency. DOE and EPA work to offer businesses and consumers energy-efficient solutions to save energy and money, while also helping to protect our environment.

More than 9,000 organizations have joined ENERGY STAR as partners committed to improving the energy efficiency of products, homes and businesses. The ENERGY STAR label appears on more than 50 kinds of consumer products.

For more general information on The Recycle My Old Fridge Campaign or The Art of Recycling: The Coolest Show in Town exhibition, see ENERGY STAR's Recycle My Old Fridge Campaign Web site. To learn more about ENERGY STAR, visit the ENERGY STAR Web site or call 1-888-STAR-YES.