Have you noticed Haley’s been quiet about saving our environment recently? Well, it’s not that she’s been quiet; it’s just that I haven’t shared it with you. Every now and then, though, she comes up with something I truly can’t afford to ignore – she hits me in the wallet. And with this long, hot summer, our energy bills are making my wallet significantly thinner.

That’s where Haley stepped in with all sorts of facts she discovered on the Energy Star website. Did you know that energy use in the average home is responsible for twice as much pollution as the average car? And the average home has 30 light fixtures, so lighting accounts for nearly 20 percent of energy costs.

Haley learned we can use Energy Star qualified compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) to help out. They use two-thirds less energy than standard bulbs, and they last six times longer. Each bulb can save us about $25 in energy costs over its lifetime.

Of course, Haley came up with some facts that don’t directly impact our family budget, too. I have to admit they’re pretty impressive. If each U.S. household replaced just one incandescent light bulb with one that earned the Energy Star label, our country could save $600 million in energy bills. That’s enough energy to light 7 million homes and prevent greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to 1 million cars.

Turning a CFL on and off frequently can shorten its life, so we chose to replace lights in the fixtures that we use the most. That means I need to sign off and get to work. I seem to be the only one in our home who can change a light bulb. At least herons don’t need to get a ladder, even for the two-story foyer!