WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A day after actor Leonardo DiCaprio hailed Al Gore on the Oscar stage as a "inspirational leader in the fight against global warming," the former vice president was forced to respond to charges from a Tennessee organization that his home consumes significantly more energy than the national average .

The Tennessee Center for Policy Research charged Monday that Gore's "mansion" "consumes more electricity every month than the average American household uses in an entire year."

"The average household in America consumes 10,656 kilowatt-hours (kWh) per year, according to the Department of Energy. In 2006, Gore devoured nearly 221,000 kWh -- more than 20 times the national average," the group charged in a statement.

"Al Gore has to be willing to walk the walk, not just talk the talk, when it comes to home energy use," the groups president Drew Johnson said in the statement.

But a spokesman for Gore quickly fired back Monday night, claiming, "The Gore's purchase all of their power through the local Green Powerswitch program -- it is 100 percent renewable power."

"In addition, they are in the midst of a renovation which includes installing solar panels on their home, which will enable them to use less power," Gore's spokeswoman Kalee Kreider said in a statement.

Watch: Gore's 'inconvenient' power bill

-- CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney

Posted 2/27/2007 01:47:00 PM | Permalink