A concerted world effort to use energy efficiently and to shift
to electric energy technologies powered primarily by
renewable energy could wean the world off its use of most
fossil and nuclear fuels by 2050, according to a new report
from WWF.
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)
The United States makes up 5% of the world's population and accounts for 25% of total energy use.
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)
Estimated energy demand is charted to grow by almost 50% in the next 20 years.
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)
