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Date: December 18, 2007

Contacts: Bruce Dines, StEPP Foundation, 303.277.0932, bdines@indra.com
Julie Sieving, The Brendle Group, 970.207.0058, jsieving@brendlegroup.com

StEPP Foundation Awards The Brendle Group $70,000
to Continue Successful Northeast Denver Energy Efficiency Program

In 2002, the StEPP Foundation funded the Northeast Metro Pollution Prevention Alliance (NEMPPA) to install energy efficiency projects in more than one dozen small businesses in Northeast Denver. The multi-year NEMPPA Energy Efficiency Program was very successful, with strong quantitative results for cost savings, energy savings, and environmental benefits. This program was a supplemental environmental project (SEP) made possible by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment's SEP Program. When the department enters into settlement negotiations with entities relative to environmental compliance issues, the alleged violator may elect to perform a SEP to mitigate a portion of its penalty. SEPs are designed to benefit the communities impacted by the violations. The StEPP Foundation may be chosen to act on behalf of an alleged violator to source and administer such projects.

StEPP recently awarded a grant of $70,000 to Ft. Collins-based sustainability consultants, The Brendle Group, to implement the second phase of the NEMPPA Energy Efficiency Program. This second phase, called FREE+, is expanded to include water conservation as well as energy conservation measures over the next two years. Qualified Northeast Metro Denver businesses that participate in FREE+ will receive technical and financial assistance toward implementing energy and water efficiency projects. "This is a great opportunity for small businesses to make changes in their facilities and operations that might not be possible otherwise," said Bruce Dines, Executive Director of the StEPP Foundation. For more information or to apply for the FREE + Energy and Water Efficiency Program, visit www.free-plus.org.

Under the original program 15 businesses experienced a total annual cost savings of more than $33,800 with an average three-year payback on investment. The program resulted in 1,487,669 lbs. CO2 and 2,736 lbs. Nox reduction per year. "Our project not only produced energy savings, it improved our manufacturing operation by improving the lighting level and heater efficiency. Having funds to help with the long payback items was an added bonus," said Steve Drake, Director of Operations with NEMPPA Energy Efficiency Program participant W.J. Whatley, Inc.

Founded in 1996, The Brendle Group is a small, woman-owned engineering consulting firm specializing in engineering sustainability through organizational change and the built environment, which includes identifying efficiency and conservation opportunities and providing the tools to turn these opportunities into realities for businesses.

For more information on the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment's SEP program, please visit www.cdphe.state.co.us/el/cross_media/seps.html . For more information on the StEPP Foundation visit www.steppfoundation.org.