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EnergyStar Label Loses Its Luster

Posted April 10, 2010 by Matthew Denton

Careful with your appliances, folks.

I got a water cooler the other month whose written sales pitch sayys it has improved chilling mechanisms with a more ergonomic design. But I was psyched by the EnergyStar sticker on the appliance so I decided it’s probably a good buy. However, when I read about the latest scandal that hounds the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s program that seeks better consumer choices for environmentally friendly products, I was in doubt if I did get my money’s worth.

Energy management through EnergyStar-rated products has become a concern when the Government Accountability Office (GAO) revealed that 15 bogus energy products received a phony rating including a gasoline powered alarm clock (seriously, who’d buy this stuff?) and an air purifier with an electric duster on top. The GAO reports, “Two bogus products were rejected by the program and 3 did not receive a response. In addition, two of the bogus Energy Star firms developed by GAO received requests from real companies to purchase products because the bogus firms were listed as Energy Star partners. This clearly shows how heavily American consumers rely on the Energy Star brand. The program is promoted through tax credits and appliance rebates, and federal agencies are required to purchase certain Energy Star certified products. In addition, companies use the Energy Star certification to market their products and consumers buy products relying on the certification by the government of reduced energy consumption and costs.”

And this is not the first time that this has happened. The New York Times writes, “Previous reports have suggested that the EnergyStar label is not always a complete or useful guide to the best consumer choices. Last October, for example, the inspector general of the E.P.A. said that 100 percent of the computer monitors that carried the EnergyStar logo had indeed met requirements. But so did 80 percent of the monitors that did not have the logo; the manufacturers had apparently not sought approval. For computer printers, 95 percent of the ones with the logo qualified, but so did 60 percent of the ones that did not have the logo. “

This is obviously a scary situation for the public. The energy certification should be an indicator of a product’s energy efficiency and not a source of humor by the public. Not only are the manufacturers of the products with bogus ratings will suffer from a dip in sales but those companies that sell legitimate EnergyStar products too. They’ve invested too much to earn the rating only to be foiled by the very same program that they’ve trusted.

But check the result of a study conducted by EcoAlign. Earth911.com reports, “According to EcoAlign’s recent 7th EcoPinion Survey of 1,000 Americans, one-third were not at all aware of the labeling system, but more than 50 percent found it extremely important to buy appliances with the Energy Star label. The results also show the recognition of the label. While only 39 percent of respondents were extremely aware of the Energy Star program with no explanation, the number jumped to 56 percent when they were shown the label as it would appear on a product.”

I can’t help but think that majority of the population are not affected by the scandal at EPA. But some are still concerned and that includes me whose water cooler seems to be working well, in fairness to the EPA.

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