The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has awarded CB Richard Ellis Group Inc. a 2010 Energy Star sustained excellence award in recognition of its energy efficiency practices.

The award will be given at a ceremony in Washington, D.C., on March 18. CBRE, an Energy Star Partner of the Year since 2008, will be honored for its long-term commitment to energy efficiency. CBRE was the first commercial real estate services company to announce a carbon neutral strategy. In addition, the company is assisting property owners and occupiers with energy efficiency programs at properties it manages around the world.

A significant element of CBRE’s sustainability efforts is participation in the Energy Star program. In 2007, the company mandated that all office buildings more than 50,000 square feet be registered with Energy Star.

Now more than 1,400 CBRE-managed buildings are participating in the program, significantly more than any other third-party management company, according to a statement.

"We are again greatly honored to be recognized by the EPA, and this award attests to the continued efforts of our clients, employees and tenants who work hard to make a difference," said David Pogue, national director of sustainability and head of the company’s green initiative in the Americas region. "Sustainability is a core value of CB Richard Ellis and we rely on the EPA’s ENERGY STAR program as a key partner in our efforts to improve the workplace environment of the space we manage and occupy across the U.S."