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SPF Celebrates Every Day Like Earth Day
Thursday, April 23, 2009
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| Spray Polyurethane Foam Alliance |
Press Release |
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| Spray Polyurethane Foam Alliance Announces:
SPF Celebrates Every Day Like Earth Day
EARTH - April 22, 2009. Today is Earth Day, as it is now known around the planet. Each society recognizes the day, in its 39th iteration, and what it stands for in different ways and different degrees of intensity. Here in the US a variety of activities from community events to government functions take place, some in Washington DC over this past weekend, some today around the nation. No matter the event or level of commitment, Earth Day is a critically important day of knowledge, celebration, and redoubling of personal, professional and societal commitment to making the right choices for Earth's health and longevity.
Initiated as an attempt to build environmental awareness upon already-strong anti-war sentiment during Vietnam, and tap into the grassroots community in homes and campuses around the nation, it finally succeeded in 1970 in raising environmental concern that eclipsed social discontent over the war. Since that time, Earth Day has grown in recognition and popularity drawing upon themes and messages* that are consistent with those of the SPF community:
- A carbon-free future based upon renewable energy that will end our common dependency on fossil fuels
- An individual's commitment to responsible, sustainable consumption
- Creation of a new green economy that lifts people out of poverty by creating millions of quality green-jobs, and transforms the global education system into a green one
*Source: earthdaynetwork.com
The Spray Polyurethane Foam Alliance (SPFA) joins in celebration of Earth Day and the ideals that have resonated with its supporters.
Spray polyurethane foam insulation and roofing products allow residences and businesses to reduce their carbon footprint by quickly and dramatically improving the building envelope performance. This results in extraordinary reductions in energy consumption, from 20 - 40%, through improved high performance insulation and air-sealing. Many SPF products can incorporate recycled content in the coatings, and many have renewable content in the form of soy or other bio-designed materials which further reduce the customer's footprint. Additionally, SPF reduces its transportation burden by being manufactured "onsite" (expanding up to one hundred times its liquid size), uses reduced-global-warming potential materials, and allows for a reduction in building material waste by being applied directly over existing roofing assemblies (as recognized by the NRCA Roofing Manual: Metal Panel and SPF Roof Systems, 2008).
Sprayfoam contractors are on the forefront of today's growing green-economy and workforce. Knowledgeable about SPF and the benefits and application standards, this contractor base is growing every day. As recognition and understanding of SPF continue to rise, misconceptions disappear and demand increases. With an uptick in business already this year, driven by commercial and federal projects, as well as a re-emerging residential market, the sprayfoam contractor represents a "shovel-ready" industry delivering energy savings, environmental stewardship and quality.
"SPFA endorses the notion proposed by EarthDay.gov of making Every Day Earth Day," stated Kurt Riesenberg, SPFA Executive Director. "Every one of our contractors out there in the field are doing something good for the long-term health of our planet with every application of SPF," he added. "SPF accommodates all of the energy savings recommendations made by organizations like DoE, EPA and others for improving insulation in your home or business, and adding air-sealing which has a huge impact on a building's energy performance."
SPF has unique performance characteristics that allow it to function as a high R-Value product, and at the same time offer substantial air-sealing capabilities all in one product. "That is what really sets us apart from the competition," offered Sean Stumler, SPFA Chairman of the Board. "Yes, SPF has a slightly higher first-cost, but for this growing community of knowledgeable, green-savvy customers that research the real performance information, they realize that the ROI on SPF is fantastic, and that the investment cost can be reduced by compounding various incentives offered by utilities and the government. For the folks committed to the ideals of Earth Day, using SPF should be an obvious choice." |
| The Evidence Continues...
SPFA will further demonstrate its commitment in May 2009, when it participates in the Sustainable Energy Coalition's 12th Annual Congressional Renewable Energy + Energy Efficiency Expo in Washington, DC. This event will focus upon the sustainable energy technologies available to address rising energy costs, energy importation, rising levels of greenhouse gas emissions, and other renewable energy aspects. "It will be a fantastic opportunity for SPF's message of energy savings, along with air-sealing, to be delivered to an audience which is a natural fit for the industry - the renewable energy community," suggested Sig Hall, SPFA's Vice Chairman of the Board. "This is a critical audience for us, in that every watt of renewably-produced energy is a result of a sometimes-costly, complex system. It should drive a customer batty to think that even a single watt could be wasted by flying out of the building due to an underperforming building envelope, which includes the roof. If someone is going to invest in these renewable energy systems, they should make sure they squeeze as much performance as possible out of every watt," Mr. Hall continued.
All of this represents SPFA and the SPF industry's redoubling of commitment to delivering energy savings, educating the public, working in concert with the renewable and sustainable energy industry, and to the environmental imperative that each of us are reminded of on this all-important Earth Day.
For more information or resources on SPF, or the important recommendations and information on Earth Day, energy savings tips, and how to live every day like it is Earth Day, please visit the links below:
Department of Energy - Make Every Day Earth Day: http://www.energy.gov/energytips.htm
Department of Energy - Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy - Earth Day 2009: http://www.eere.energy.gov/earthday/
Department of Energy - Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy - Federal Energy Management Program - Earth Day 2009: New Energy for America: http://www.eere.energy.gov/femp/services/earthday.html
US Environmental Protection Agency: http://www.epa.gov/earthday
Pick 5 for the Environment - US EPA: http://www.epa.gov/pick5/
Information from other federal agencies about the environment is available from USA.gov, the official U.S. government portal:
http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Environment_Agriculture.shtml
Spray Polyurethane Foam Alliance (SPFA): http://www.sprayfoam.org |
| Check out the DoE's recommendations for insulation and air-sealing at their Make Every Day Earth Day site: http://www.energy.gov/energytips.htm
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| About Spray Polyurethane Foam AllianceServing the entire SPF value-chain of contractors, material, equipment and coatings suppliers. It is our job to remove obstacles and present opportunities for growth, increased safety and quality in the industry. |
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