Hillarysworld

"It's a real opportunity to lead by example," says Nancy Sutley, chairwoman of the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ). "And not just for the environment but to spur innovation and create jobs and savings." (Emphasis added)

In 2008, the CEQ says, the government spent $24.5 billion on fuel and electricity, and the emissions reductions should cut that bill considerably.

The 28% overall goal was reached after 35 agencies, complying with an executive order issued by President Obama in October, set targets for reducing the gases that scientific data suggest cause the Earth to warm. (Emphasis added)

Each year between now and 2020, the Office of Management and Budget will measure each department or agency's progress and post the results online.

Among the efforts already underway:

• The Army's Fort Irwin training center in California is building a 500-megawatt solar plant in the Mojave Desert that will power the entire 22,000-person base.

• The U.S. Postal Service is building the largest green roof in New York City on a seven-story mail-processing building. Besides providing a park for employees, the roof will save up to $30,000 a year in energy costs and will reduce polluted storm water runoff.

• The Department of Energy is building one of the largest biomass facilities in the country at its Savannah River site in Aiken, S.C. The $795 million project will replace an inefficient coal powerhouse and oil-fired boilers, saving $34 million a year.