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26 Degree Campaign
Open Letter
June 26 th 2004 marked the beginning of the “26 ° Campaign”, jointly launched by six environmental organizations in Beijing, namely Global Village of Beijing, WWF China, China Association for NGO Cooperation, Friends of Nature, Institute for Environment and Development and Green Earth Volunteers. The campaign will last for 3 months from June 26 th to September 26 th , 2004 and aims at promoting concrete energy conservation actions amongst big hotels, shopping malls, office buildings, public organizations and private homes. The six environmental organizations suggest to set the temperature of air conditioners to 26 ° C or higher, which will save electricity, lower the stress on the already overloaded power systems in Beijing and contribute to environmental protection. We, the alliance of NGOs, therefore call on all citizens and organizations in Beijing to act responsibly in their homes and offices.
Until now, the “26 ° Campaign” has already received the support and cooperation of over 30 environmental organizations throughout China. In Beijing various five and four-star hotels such as the Sino-Swiss Hotel, Kempinski, Novotel, Beijing International Hotel and the Jian Guo Hotel have become partners of the campaign. Likewise a public office building, the Wenhuagong in the Beijing Working People's Culture Palace and the Nigerian Embassy have also committed themselves to the campaign goal. The campaign initiators are currently in contact with other hotels, office buildings, embassies, etc and urge them to become partners in this campaign – thereby expanding the chain of environmentally responsible organizations.
Beijing is currently experiencing a severe power shortage problem with a lack of 1200 MW in electricity supply. During the summer months, air conditioners are responsible for the power consumption of 400-500 MW, or 40%-50% of the total power consumption. As of now, most air conditioners are set at temperatures around 22-24 ° C, while some are set even lower, using unnecessarily high amounts of electricity while creating discomfort and illness.
If the temperature of all air conditioners was raised from 22-24 ° C to 26-28 ° C, both organizations and private homes would benefit greatly from energy savings. With Beijing as an example, the total energy saved would be 400-600 million kWh during the campaign period. The total energy consumption at peak hours would be reduced by 50-75MW, and would lower the pressure to Beijing's overloaded power systems.
These measures could also lead to 180-270 million RMB in saved electricity bills. An increase of 1 ° C in a domestic air conditioner reduces energy consumption by 0.3 kWh per 5 hours of operation. In the three months period of the campaign, approx. 27 kWh of electricity could be saved in households. If all of Beijing's more than 4 million households raised the temperatures of their air conditioners 1-2 ° C, the power consumption could be lowered by 100-200MWh, which is equivalent to 50-100 million RMB. Not only could electricity be saved, but also less pollution from coal-fired power plants would be generated, contributing to the protection of the environment.
It is for the sake of our environment and human health that we direct this letter to you and your organization and call on you to take action. At home and in every day life, each and every person can make a difference! Beijing is China's capital, and we have a great influence on entire China. We urge you to join our campaign by setting your air conditioners to 26 ° C or higher, so that we, together, can make Beijing a better place to live and become a model for the rest of the country!
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