The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has
proposed to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles
under the Clean Air Act, and that could trigger new
regulations for a large number of greenhouse gas emitters. A
proposed rule would limit those regulations to the largest
emitters.
The United States makes up 5% of the world's population and accounts for 25% of total energy use.
Public policies such as appliance and vehicle efficiency standards and building codes are responsible for at least 20% of the improvement in the US's energy intensity--energy use per unit of GDP. (Source: Institute for 21st Century Energy)
Today’s challenges of reducing greenhouse gas emissions while meeting the country’s steadily rising demand for electricity make it essential for legislatures and public utility commissions to shift their focus toward mechanisms that make demand reduction as profitable for utilities as increasing supply. (Source: Institute for 21st Century Energy)
Estimated energy demand is charted to grow by almost 50% in the next 20 years.
Appliances account for roughly 65% of electricity consumption in the average American household (2001), with refrigerators and lighting making up the largest categories. (Source: EIA)
