WASHINGTON, D.C. — A Verizon call-routing center, South Carolina energy plant and the University of New Mexico have been recognized by the U.S. EPA for running combined heat and power (CHP) systems that have reduced each facility's energy use by at least 20 percent.

Combined heat and power, or cogeneration, systems produce both electricity and heat at the same time from one fuel source, requiring less energy and emitting fewer greenhouse gases than separate systems.

The Verizon facility in Garden City, NY, was awarded for its fuel cell CHP system, which recovers hot water and reuses it for cooling and heating the office building. The system, the largest commercial fuel cell installation of its kind, uses 25 percent less fuel than typical alternatives.

The Calpine Corporation was recognized for its Gaston, SC, Columbia Energy Center, which runs a combustion turbine CHP system that produces up to 500 MW of electricity and one million pounds of steam per hour, requiring 20 percent less fuel than alternative systems. The electricity goes to the grid and the steam is used by a nearby manufacturing plant.

The University of New Mexico's natural gas-based CHP system provides about one-third of the campus' electricity needs and creates steam used for heating, cooling and hot water production. It also requires 20 percent less fuel than alternatives.

The Energy Star CHP Award is given to facilities with CHP systems that use at least 5 percent less fuel than comparable separate heat and power generation systems.