The European Commission and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on June 17 announced new energy efficiency standards for office equipment such as computers, copiers, printers and fax machines.
The new standards set forth under the EU-US Energy Star Programme go into effect July 1. The criteria are expected to save the equivalent of a small country's annual electricity consumption. The standards were developed by EU member states in collaboration with the EPA and officials around the world.
The EU ENERGY STAR Programme was formed under an agreement between the United States and the European Community (EU) to coordinate energy labeling of office equipment and is managed by the European Commission. The EPA began the scheme in the United States in 1992.
