SCHRIEVER SPACE FORCE BASE, Colo -- National Energy Action Month, also known as Energy Awareness Month, has been observed during October since 1991. The year’s theme is "Energy Able Mission Capable", which serves as a call to action for Schriever Space Force Base, Peterson SFB and Cheyenne Mountain Space Force Station, personnel to practice energy efficient habits in their daily lives work or at home.
Energy Awareness Month is a time for Guardians and Airmen to put energy efficient habits to practice especially with cooler weather approaching.
The Schriever SFB Energy Team is looking to the base populaces to provide ideas on how to save energy and water through energy management, building optimization, energy resilience and the use of advanced and distributed energy technologies.
Energy and water are critical to the Front Range bases’ ability to accomplish its mission – to provide the global presence necessary to ensure stability, deter potential adversaries and present options in times of crisis.
Through improved energy efficiency and increased utilization of renewable energy at the Front Range bases and their geographically separated units, the installations gain two advantages:
- Strategic Advantage - Diversifying our energy supply to incorporate alternative energy sources like renewables, LED’s and ground source heat pumps, so that we can continue operations in the event of a commercial grid failure.
- Force Protection Advantage - Transforming energy usage and innovating base systems improves our energy resiliency, reducing vulnerabilities to base Guardians and Airmen, providing a reliable source of energy and water to base facilities.
Transform the way you use energy by implementing these tips:
- Report lights left on to your civil engineer customer service and base energy manager. Automatic controls or a different type of lighting system may fix the problem.
2. Use natural daylight and reduce or eliminate artificial lighting when possible.
3. Close your blinds and drapes at night in the winter to keep the cold air out.
4. Don’t set your thermostat to a colder setting than normal to cool faster. It will not cool faster and will just use more energy.
5. When you leave the room, turn the fan off. Letting it run wastes energy and does nothing to cool the room. In fact, the heat from the motor actually warms the room a little.
6. Set the fan speed of your central air conditioner on high. When it’s humid, set the speed on low; you will get less cooling, but more moisture will be removed from the air which will make it feel cooler.
7. Don’t speed. For every mile-per-hour over 55 mph, the average vehicle loses almost two percent in gas mileage.
8. Conduct a simple do-it-yourself energy audit of your home or office to pinpoint where energy is being lost.
Submit your ideas on how the Front Range can take action to save energy: 50sw.energy@us.af.mil.