Focus On Energy Efficiency Pays
We know that there’s a lot of wastage in energy consumption. Combine that ineffeciency with pilfering and incompetence and we have the disaster that we have been going through. Here’s an article which mentions a report which talks about efficient usage pays big.
The U.S. could successfully cut its non-transportation energy use by up to 23 percent by 2020 through energy efficiency initiatives alone, argues a report just issued by consulting firm McKinsey & Co. That differential could save the country as much as $130 billion and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 1.1 gigatons every year.
That said, getting the U.S. in shape to actually effect these changes could be quite costly. The firm estimates that $520 billion would need to be invested first to put proper efficiency measures in place. Demand response and the smart grid are the two areas that should receive the bulk of this investment, the report suggests. Low-energy lighting, such as light emitting-diode systems, energy storage solutions and the like are also sectors that will likely see a lot of this startup money.
The report also highlights a couple of less-hyped methods for improving energy efficiency, including weatherizing homes and developing technologies for waste heat recovery. But implementing these changes is a massive task that would require a lot more than the money — it would take a shift in national attitude. Americans haven’t typically been good at adopting practices that require steep upfront costs in order to reap gradual rewards.
In order to push through these barriers, McKinsey recommends implementing new efficiency standards on local, statewide and national levels — strategies that would require participation from every segment of the chain from utilities to consumers and from companies to the government.
With most analysts’ eyes fixed on the climate-related legislation pending in Congress, McKinsey says more action needs to be taken to bolster green building in the U.S. The firm arrived at the same conclusions in a report issued two years ago. That one emphasized the links between tons of carbon dioxide saved and money saved.
