Kadena turns on the heat Published Jan. 5, 2011 By Lt. Col. Ann Birchard 718th Civil Engineer Squadron KADENA AIR BASE, Japan -- With an unusually cold winter upon us here in Okinawa, it's important for Kadena residents to understand how decisions are made with respect to heating in base housing. The 718th Civil Engineer Squadron is responsible for turning on and off the air conditioning and heating in military family housing. Some base residents may be wondering why we have not turned on the heat. The answer boils down to a concerted effort on the 18th Wing's part to balance quality of life with presidentially-mandated energy reduction policies. The Kadena Air Base heating policy for housing units serviced by central heat plants is partially modeled after U.S. Marine Corps Camps "Year-Round A/C- No Heat" policy. The policy was in response to an inordinate amount of "too hot" complaints on 74% of Marine Camp housing serviced by central heat plants. Since homes in Okinawa generally do not have heating systems, this is a prudent approach to energy conservation. This decision has saved about $450,000 in fuel costs since 2006. Kadena Air Base took a cautionary approach to adopting the "Year-Round A/C- No Heat" policy, instead issuing an interim policy. The interim policy does not "turn off" heat in the 28% of Kadena housing units serviced by central heat plants, but requires heat plants to be activated when the seven-day average temperature is below 65 degrees Fahrenheit. The seven-day average is used to prevent premature heat activation during short-lived cold snaps and to prevent needless activation/deactivation of the heat plants, which take five to seven days to start-up. Unfortunately, this limits our flexibility to react to unpredictable weather. The reality is that cooler temperatures came earlier in 2010 than in the past 5 years. Kadena's leadership has shown flexibility by adapting to the unusually cold year and approved heat turn-on when the temperature reached a seven-day average high of 66 degrees. This is one degree warmer than our interim policy stipulates, but this decision was made in an attempt to balance quality of life for our housing residents with our energy saving goals. Why balance quality of life with energy savings? Presidentially-mandated energy reduction policies require us to reduce energy intensity by three percent every year, which, for Kadena, is equivalent to 21 billion British Thermal Units, 170,000 gallons of diesel fuel, or 1,500 metric tons of carbon dioxide. While the unseasonably cool weather has caused us to adjust the interim policy, the real issue is Kadena has a projected $3.5 million shortfall in utility bills this fiscal year. That's right... $3.5 million. The money to pay those bills could come from unit funds which will affect the mission if we all don't do our part to conserve energy. A balanced approach to energy conservation is what the 718th CES is striving for, and we need everyone's help. Here are some things we all can do to conserve energy and do our part: 1. For those units that can control their thermostat, set it at 68 degrees for heating 2. Dress for the season. In the winter, it is normal to wear more clothing to retain body heat; this allows for lower room temperatures 3. Seal your doors and windows with material available at Eagle hardware 4. Close rooms that are not being used, an open empty room will only waste energy 5. Open your curtains and blinds during the day to let sunshine in and close them at night 6. If your unit is equipped with programmable thermostat, learn how to program and use it or call housing maintenance for instructions.