RAF MILDENHALL, England – October is Energy Action month throughout the Air Force and U.S. federal government. But, you may be asking, “What is Energy Action Month?”

The goals of Energy Action Month are to increase awareness about energy consumption and encourage energy-savings. Throughout the month, the RAF Mildenhall Energy Management Office will highlight energy-efficient actions that are good practices, which can lead to increased mission assurance and reduced energy costs.

This year’s Air Force’s Energy Action Month theme is “Protect the Power”: a call to action for our service community to practice sustainable energy efficient habits in their daily lives, while focusing on educating all energy consumers about the impact of energy to the mission.

The energy management office aims to promote innovative ways in which Airmen, civilians and their families can make better energy-aware choices. These include turning off the lights, powering down appliances and other equipment, driving smarter, and observing energy-efficient behaviors on the job and at home. Adopting these types of best practices can have a significant impact on reducing energy demand, increase energy efficiency and combat climate change.

Did you know?
• The Department of Defense is the largest U.S. government user of energy.
• The Air Force alone typically accounts for less than 50 percent of the total DoD energy consumption and costs.

Energy plays an important role in every aspect of the RAF Mildenhall mission. To better understand more about energy within our installation, and in support of academic research in energy sustainability, the 2017 Installation Energy Outlook Survey allows the energy management office to gain insight of the current energy climate of the installation at personnel, community and family levels.

The survey, which can be accessed at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/2017InstallationEnergySustainabilityOutlook, aims to identify important information about how Air Force installations can plan and manage energy needs. The goal of the survey is to gather information that can later be shared with energy stakeholders.

The survey is voluntary and does not imply Air Force endorsement. All data collected will be protected and the responses cannot be individually identified. For the purpose of this survey, “energy” includes all liquid fuel, heating gas, electrical power, operational and installation energy. If you have any questions about the survey, email installationenergystudy@gmail.com.

As a member of the Air Force family and community, you are able to share any energy savings ideas you have throughout the year by contacting Owen Biggs, 100th Civil Engineer Squadron energy manager, at 100ces.ceao@mildenhall.af.mil.