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Energy Efficiency: The First Fuel

April 2009

April 2009

Increasing the efficient use of existing energy supplies is widely acknowledged as the fastest, cheapest, and cleanest way to meet future energy needs. Energy Efficiency: The First Fuel examines the strong U.S. record of tapping efficiency as a resource, and the accelerated efforts by individuals, organizations, and governments to squeeze greater productivity from all energy sources.

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Inside This Publication

Volume 14, Number 4 | April 2009 (copy)

From The Editors

A Truly Global Issue

  • Energy Efficiency: Easier Said Than Done

    An Interview with Matthew H. Brown and David Fridley
    Two experts with broad U.S. and international experience discuss the many strategies that various national and local governments have attempted to encourage energy efficiency.

  • An Oil Giant Dreams Green

    Bryan Walsh, Time Magazine
    Abu Dhabi, one of the world’s largest petroleum producers, has launched the Masdar Initiative, a multibillion-dollar project to establish the emirate as a center for efficiency and energy innovation.

  • Virginia Learns Energy Innovations from Abroad

    Dale Medearis, Senior Environmental Planner, Northern Virginia Regional Commission (NVRC)
    Local officials from Northern Virginia trade ideas on climate adaptation, energy efficiency, and renewables with counterparts in Europe.

  • Promoting Citizenship Through Energy Efficiency

    Fábio Palmigiani, Freelance Journalist
    Brazilian power companies work to educate customers about becoming legitimate bill-paying customers, leading to safer neighborhoods and a path to citizenship.

Educating Consumers

  • The Ever-Expanding Universe of Energy Star

    Kathleen Hogan, Director of the Climate Protection Partnerships Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
    Energy Star, a U.S. government flagship program advocating efficiency, has significant influence on energy consumption in homes, businesses, and industry.

  • U.S. Energy Efficiency Advances in 2009

    A summary of efficiency initiatives in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

  • Stimulating Efficiency for the Long Term

    Stacy Angel, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and Larry Mansueti, U.S. Department of Energy
    The U.S. energy industry and the officials who regulate it have joined forces to develop and implement new ways to bring greater efficiency to the nation’s entire energy infrastructure.

  • Blogging for Efficiency

    Citizens describe how they are changing their homes and habits.

  • An Energy Revolution by the People

    Elisa Wood, Contributor,
    www.RealEnergyWriters.com
    Real gains in energy efficiency must be made by consumers one at a time, and many are encouraging creative efficiency measures in their communities.

  • Vampires in the House

    Many common household appliances consume energy even when they are not in use.

  • Oil Companies Embrace Energy Efficiency

    Patrick Crow, Freelance Journalist
    Big oil companies are running major ad campaigns to get consumers to use energy more wisely, demonstrating just how serious the energy efficiency movement has become.

  • Big Oil Goes Green

    Large U.S. oil companies’ campaigns on energy efficiency are summarized.

Connect with Us

  • Effici-Facts
    • 1

      • Energy conservation is any behavior that results in the use of less energy. Energy efficiency is the use of technology that requires less energy to perform the same function.

        Source: The National Energy Education Development Project, whose mission is to promote an energy-conscious society. The NEED Project creates networks of students, educators, business, government, and community leaders to design and deliver energy education programs.
    • 2

      • An American home equipped entirely with products bearing the ENERGY STAR label will reduce energy bills and greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent.

        Source: The National Energy Education Development Project
    • 3

      • Heating and cooling systems use more energy than any other systems in American homes. Typically, 44 percent of an average family’s energy bill is spent to keep their home at a comfortable temperature.

        Source: The National Energy Education Development Project
    • 4

      • U.S. Home Energy Usage

        Heating 34%
        Cooling 11%
        Lighting/Appliances 34%
        Water Heating 13%
        Refrigeration 8%


        Source: U.S. Department of Energy
    • 5

      • Effici-Fact
        Lighting Efficiency

        Click to enlarge
    • 6

      • The average American uses 500 gallons (1,893) of gasoline every year. The average vehicle is driven more than 12,000 miles (19,312) per year. Improving driving habits and vehicle maintenance can achieve 10 percent fuel savings.

        Source: The National Energy Education Development Project
    • 7

      • A U.S. law passed in 1990 required appliance manufacturers to improve efficiency. As a result, water heaters, refrigerators, and clothes washers and dryers all use much less energy today than they did 25 years ago.

        Source: The National Energy Education Development Project
    • 8

      • Using recycled material almost always consumes less energy than using new materials. Recycling a pound of steel saves enough energy to light a 60-watt light bulb for 26 hours. Recycling a ton of glass saves the equivalent of nine gallons of fuel oil.

        Source: The National Energy Education Development Project

Resources

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