The Energy Smackdown™ held its Season Two Finale Wednesday, June 17th at the Regent Theatre in Arlington, Massachusetts. Teams from Arlington, Cambridge, and Medford, Massachusetts capped off the second season of the Energy Smackdown™ by gathering to hear the results and receive awards for their efforts. The BrainShift Foundation, organizers of the Energy Smackdown, in partnership with its primary sponsors, handed out individual and team awards in the following categories.
NATIONAL GRID PRIZE FOR REDUCTION IN HEATING FUEL
National Grid sponsored a reduction in heating fuel prize. The winners, the Koenig family of Arlington, reduced its use 66 percent. The average contestant reduced 17 percent.
- 1st place: Koenig Family of Arlington (66 percent reduction over 12 months)
- 2nd place: Lamonica Family of Arlington (51 percent reduction over 12 months)
- 3rd place: Peach Family of Arlington (44 percent reduction over 12 months)
- Average all households: 17 percent
- Honorable mention! Paine, Laiosa, and Cheimets families.
NSTAR PRIZE FOR REDUCTION IN ELECTRICITY
NSTAR sponsored a reduction in electricity prize. The winners, the Lamonicas of Arlington, cut their electricity 73 percent. The average contestant reduced 14 percent. Martin Lamonica said solar panels and power strips were two key contributors.
- 1st place: Lamonica Family of Arlington (73 percent reduction over 12 months)
- 2nd place: Thompson Family of Arlington (37 percent)
- 3rd place: Paine Family of Medford (28 percent).
- Average all households: 14 percent.
- Honorable mention! Hunt, Laiosa, and Culverhouse families.
NORTHEAST ENERGY EFFICIENCY PARTNERSHIPS (NEEP) PRIZE FOR GREENEST HOUSEHOLD
The Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships sponsored an award for the smallest carbon footprint. The winning Roof family, of Cambridge, started out at 8,600 pounds per person, and ended at 4,000, employing \"a little bit of everything,\" including composting, using CFLs, and cycling every day. For context, Sue Coakley, NEEP Executive Director, said that carbon neutrality would require 4,500 pounds per person, the world average is 8,000 pounds per person, and the US average is 18,880. The average annual use among Smackdown participants at the beginning of the contest was 14,500 pounds, and was down to 12,000 by the end of the year.
- 1st place: Roof Family of Cambridge (4,000 pounds CO2 per person)
- 2nd place: Marti Family of Cambridge (5,358 pounds)
- 3rd place: Lamonica Family of Arlington (5,820 pounds)
- Ending average all households: 12,000 pounds
- Honorable mention! Klein, Marin, and Cugno families.
CARBON CRUSHER PRIZE FOR REDUCTION IN CO2 EMISSIONS
Frank Gorke, Director of Energy Efficiency at the Massachusetts Division of Energy Resources presented a \"carbon crusher\" award for the greatest percent reduction in CO2 emissions over the 12 months of the contest. The Carbon Crusher award also went to the Roof family, whose reduction was 54 percent. That compares to the oft-stated societal goal of reducing carbon dioxide output by 80 percent by 2050.
- 1st place: Roof Family of Cambridge (54 percent reduction; from 8,678 pounds to 4,000 pounds)
- 2nd place: Marti Family of Cambridge (47 percent reduction; from 10,095 pounds to 5,358 pounds)
- 3rd place: Klein/Botka Family of Cambridge (44 percent reduction; from 11,797 pounds CO2 to 6,818 pounds)
- The total CO2 reduced for the 31 households was 0.25 million pounds over 12 months
- Honorable mention! Hunt, Kayne, and Koenig families.
TEAM PRIZE FOR TOTAL POINTS
The Museum of Science sponsored a team prize for the most points earned over the 12 months of the contest. Arlington won the team competition impressively, falling just short of beating the other two teams\' combined score. That team outcome was mirrored in episode #6 of a planned 7-installment TV series about the competition that was debuted during the evening. It chronicled a light bulb exchange derby, one of several special challenges during the year. On one cold and frenetic morning, competitors got friends and neighbors to change out 888 incandescent bulbs for compact fluorescents. Arlington team members scored 486 of them, 55 percent. The 7-part series will be available this fall on the web and will be shown on local-access cable.
- 1st place: “A” Team of Arlington (304,353 points)
- 2nd place: Team Medford (159,479 points)
- 3rd place: Energy Busters of Cambridge (125,181 points)
Was it tough?
Most people said it was easier than they thought. “We basically started being more thoughtful about things,” explained Pam Klein. Her family achieved a 44 percent reduction in household energy over the 12 months of the contest. “Changing all the bulbs to compact fluorescents, turning electronics all the way off rather than leaving them on stand by, and getting our kids involved in doing things like turning off the lights has helped.”
One child offered that it was hard to get used to turning off all the lights, but when asked if his mom had had to nag him, he replied, \"No, I had to nag her.\" Laurel Kayne of the Arlington Team whose family reduced its energy use by 33 percent said, “I\'m very careful about the dehumidifier, since it literally triples our daily electricity usage. We replaced our fridge and dishwasher, which both gave out last summer. That made a huge difference.”
“I’m looking towards what we can accomplish both individually and collectively moving forward,” said Chris Roof, of the Cambridge team whose family received the top prize for Greenest Household as well as the Carbon Crusher award. “This is one big part of a future I’m very optimistic about!”
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