Department of Commerce Sustainability
and Environmental Stewardship Awards

Commerce Department initiated the Energy and Environmental Stewardship Award in 2009 to recognize the outstanding group and individual contributions to Energy conservation and/or environmental stewardship practices within the Department. The program highlights the outstanding contributions and efforts of the Commerce workforce and as a method to increase awareness and promote additional innovative efforts across the entire Department.

The Department's Annual Sustainability and Environmental Stewardship Awards Program recognize and promote Department achievements related to the goals set in Executive Order (EO) 13693, Planning for Federal Sustainability in the Next Decade. This award recognizes individual employees and teams that exemplify exceptional sustainability, energy, and/or environmental performance within their program, career field, or organization.

For the FY18 awards cycle all nominations must be submitted electronically in accordance with the instructions by January 12, 2018.  The Department will present the awards as a part of the Herbert C. Hoover Building’s Earth Day Celebration on Thursday, April 19, 2018 in the main auditorium.

If you have any questions contact the OSEEP awards program coordinator, Anna Kavalieris at akavalieris@doc.gov or (202) 482-1080.

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Congratulations to the FY 16 Winners:

--- Energy and Water Management: United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO); Alexandria, VA Headquarters. Recognized for its commitment to protecting our environment and conserving the earth’s resources by improving energy management and reducing the agency’s greenhouse gas emissions. Electrical consumption is down by over 1,000,000 kilo-watt hours in Fiscal Year 15 compared to Fiscal Year 14.  The estimated utility savings are $95,000 per year and an additional $105,000 savings per year in lamp costs.

--- Energy and Water Management, runner up: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA); National Marine Fisheries Service; Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) Condensate Recovery System. Recognized for their success in recovering waste condensate from their HVAC system to be reused as make-up water for their facility’s cooling towers.  The project cost $500 to implement and saves the facility over $2000 per year in City water/sewage costs avoidance.

--- Recycling: National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)- Boulder Green Team. Recognized for its desire to make the NIST Boulder campus a sustainable world class workplace through dramatic increase in recycling, which contributed to the reinvention of its recycling program from the ground up.  The efforts brought a 30% reduction in materials going into the trash from Fiscal Year 14 to Fiscal Year 15 and a 19% cost savings. 

--- Green Dream Team: NOAA; Headquarters Green Initiatives; Silver Spring Metro Center, GSA, Foulger-Pratt Building Management Team. Recognized for its outstanding work with a large number of required Energy Conservation Measures that were incorporated into new leases for NOAA Headquarters Silver Spring Metro Center Campus.  Many projects have been completed since 2012 which include Lighting upgrades; Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning control upgrades; Variable Speed Drives on numerous types of equipment; premium efficiency motors; domestic hot water controls; a Chiller Plant upgrade; insulation upgrades; thermal equalizer air de-stratification; and vending miser controls. 

--- Alternative Fuel and Fuel Conservation in Transportation: USPTO; Electric Charging Stations. Recognized for its breakthrough in the ability of a federal agency to make electric vehicle charging available to employees. This resulted in reducing commuting costs as well as the Agency’s Scope 3 emissions related to employee commuting in Executive Order 13693.  In the programs first year there was an estimated 86,400 miles of employee commuting by gas-driven vehicles avoided.

--- Alternative Fuel and Fuel Conservation in Transportation Runner-up: NOAA Ship Hi’ialakai: Recognized for its efforts to improve energy efficiency and reduce its environmental impact by reducing emissions.  Ship Hi’ialakai conserved approximately 27,000 gallons of fuel which equates to approximately $94,000 or 600,000 pounds of carbon dioxide in FY15.  This was accomplished without major repair or additional equipment by reducing generator use both during operations and on transits between work sites. 

--- Lean, Clean, and Green: Department Of Commerce's (DOC) Energy Savings Contract Team (Census; NOAA; NIST; DOC Sustainable Energy and Environmental Programs and Office of General Counsel; Department of Energy National Renewable Energy Lab). Recognized for their diligent team efforts over the past five years to develop and award five complex long-term alternatively financed energy contracts valued at a total of $138 million dollars.  The team exceeded the Department's commitment of $12M against the President’s Challenge by more than 10 fold, and well ahead of schedule.

Other Past Winners

Office of Facilities and Environmental Quality
Office of the Chief Financial Officer and Assistant Secretary for Administration
U.S. Department of Commerce

Send questions and comments about this page to ContactOFEQ@doc.gov

Page last updated:November 27, 2017