A survey by the municipal government shows that per capita power consumption of civil servants in Beijing decreased by ten percent from 2004 to 2007.

The average power consumption of each civil servant from November 2006 to October 2007 amounted to 3,072.5 kilowatt-hours (kwhs), according to Beijing Municipal Construction Committee (BMCC) and Beijing Municipal Commission of Development and Reform.

The two commissions conducted a survey in 36 office buildings belonging to 20 state organizations, Beijing Daily has reported.

It is the first time results of power consumption auditing for government office buildings and large public buildings have been published, said an official from BMCC.

He said such auditing will oblige the government organizations, which are usually big power users, to save energy.

The results of the auditing also showed that from November 2006 to October 2007, supermarkets were the biggest power users, consuming 175.5 kwhs per square meter a year, while hospitals are the biggest water consumers with an average of 3.158 tons per square meter a year.

(Xinhua News Agency January 5, 2008)