NEEA pushing super-efficient TVs in Northwest

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Ultra-efficient televisions will make up 35 percent of those sold in the Northwest by the end of the year according to the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance.

The Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance announced this month that its effort to label and market the industry's most efficient televisions is making headway.

The Energy Forward program, launched at the end of 2009, labels the most efficient of the Energy Star-rated television. Its orange labels are now found in 80 percent of Northwest television retailers, helping consumers understand the energy consumption of different TV models.

NEEA, a nonprofit funded by the Bonneville Power Administration, Energy Trust of Oregon and more than 100 Northwest utilities, estimates that at the start of the year 12 percent of TVs sold in the Northwest were Energy Forward-rated. By the end of 2011, the group hopes to push that total to between 35 percent and 40 percent.

The effort has so far saved the region about 13.7 megawatts — or enough to power 10,453 homes.

NEEA's goal is to make the more efficient televisions easier to spot. A related Facebook and Twitter campaign is aiming to further get the word out.

“We designed Energy Forward to make it easy for consumers to find TVs that deliver the most technologically advanced performance and energy efficiency,” said Stephanie Fleming, residential sector manager for NEEA, in a press release.

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