Reelectionist Senator Sherwin Gatchalian underscored Saturday, April 2 the need for consumer education in increasing energy efficiency with the right appliances and devices to curb the monthly electricity bills of households and commercial establishments and at the same time help in managing the country’s power reserves.
“Sa mga panahon na mataas ang demand sa konsumo ng kuryente at nagbabadya ang pagkakaroon ng rotational brownouts dahil sa kakulangan sa suplay, malaking bagay kung nakakapagtipid tayo sa kuryente sa mga ginagamit natin araw-araw (During the current high demand for power availability, it is desirable that we save on electricity everyday,’’ he said.
Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate Energy Committee, is the sponsor of Republic Act (RA) 11285, known as the “Energy Efficiency and Conservation Act.”
The law requires manufacturers, along with importers and dealers, to comply with the Minimum Energy Performance (MEP) and to display the energy label and the energy efficiency label showing the energy requirement and consumption efficiency of products such as appliances, devices, lighting fixtures, electrical equipment, and machines on the packaging and on the products themselves, as well as transport vehicles.
MEP refers to a performance standard that prescribes a minimum level of energy performance for the commercial, industrial and transportation sectors, and energy consuming products that must be met or exceeded before they can be offered for sale or used for residential, commercial, transport, and industrial purposes.
“While it is not explicitly provided under the law, it is the responsibility of those in the business sector not only to educate but promote to consumers ways in which the public can conserve energy and attain savings in patronizing their products,” the reelectionist senator said.
“Kapag tayo ay nakakabawas at nakatipid sa paggamit ng kuryente, para na rin tayong nagdadagdag ng suplay (Reduction of the use of electricity means that we have apparently increased power output). Sa batas na ito, binigyan natin ng kapangyarihan ang DOE (Department of Energy) para ma-manage ‘yung demand, mabawasan ‘yung konsumo natin at gumamit ng teknolohiya para maging episyente ang paggamit natin ng enerhiya (Because of this law, we give power to DOE to manage power demand, reduce power consumption and adopt technology to have efficient use of energy),” Gatchalian said.