Recent reports that carbon dioxide emissions in the U.S. have fallen by 10 percent — to about 1992 levels — is good news. But the really great news is that this decline is caused by a more energy-efficient economy and increasing use of alternative fuels, including the astonishing drop in the percentage of our electricity generated by coal, from 50 percent to 34 percent in just five years. Replacing coal with natural gas has decreased carbon emissions, reduced acid rain, improved air quality and human health and decreased the cost of electricity.
As The Associated Press reported, the rapid decrease in carbon dioxide was unexpected, pointing out a shortcoming of regulating carbon dioxide. Regulation of carbon dioxide isn’t effective because average residents can’t relate to reducing the emissions in their day-to-day lives. Instead, a proactive energy policy can phase in sustainable energy sources, which reduce carbon dioxide without actually focusing directly on it.
The U.S. has needed to develop an energy plan since the first oil embargo in 1973, yet it hasn’t done so. How can the country improve energy economy, while reducing carbon-dioxide emissions? The answers are already available. With some tweaks to public policy to create incentives, we can change the prevalent cultural norms.
Within 10 years, everyone should expect to heat their home for no more than a few hundred dollars a year. Within 10 years, most families should own at least one electric car that operates at a fraction of the cost per kilowatt compared to the price of gasoline. Why do people consider pre-buying their heating oil to save money, but virtually no one considers pre-buying electricity using solar power? We need a new cultural norm.
Here are some specific steps for Maine:
1. Reduce upfront costs for energy projects. Property Assessed Clean Energy loans allow property owners to fold the cost of energy improvements into their property taxes. Alternatively, the costs can be incorporated into a mortgage. Either way, these financing methods pay for themselves by reducing energy costs immediately. If a PACE home is sold, the new owner takes over the payments, while saving energy costs immediately. One hundred and fifty Maine municipalities have passed ordinances authorizing PACE loans. If yours hasn’t, ask it to.
2. Encourage Power Purchase Agreements in which an energy company pays the upfront costs of an alternative energy system and then sells the power back at a reduced rate. This financing mechanism works best for public buildings, such as schools and municipal buildings. Imagine reducing the energy bills for your town’s schools by 10, 25 or even 50 percent with no upfront costs.
3. Raise the cap on privately-generated electricity from solar or wind and require utilities to carry net-metered credits forward indefinitely. Better yet, if utilities pay homeowners for producing more power than they consume, micro-generation will flourish and everyone will want solar panels. These minor tweaks to current policy would remove significant disincentives for generating renewable power in Maine and lessen the pressure on the electric grid.
4. Develop incentives for conversion from oil heat. Maine’s reliance on heating oil is a major economic drag and potentially economically catastrophic in the event of an oil shock. Geothermal and air-source heat pumps can heat homes cost-effectively with locally produced electricity. (Maine is already a net electricity exporter and can produce more from sources including solar, biomass, tidal and offshore wind).
Bangor Hydro Electric and Central Maine Power already have incentives for efficient electric heating devices that can reduce heating oil use by 60 percent to 90 percent. Look to Efficiency Maine for other incentives for your home or business. We can keep our energy dollars here in Maine and make our state the most economically competitive state in the region.
Dave Edson is president and CEO of Sewall Co. in Old Town. Steve Kahl is director of environmental sciences for Sewall and a former environmental research director in both the University of Maine and University of New Hampshire systems.
Great opinion piece – Kudos Dave and Steve.
Now we have a Legislature that will take these issues seriously.
Yessah
Neat ideas, and pragmatic. But your #3 (net-metering) is insane. To expect utilities to buy whatever electrons that homeowners produce, regardless of demand, is plainly unsustainable. Not to mention that the ISO has a grid to manage.
We do like the idea of TOU (time of use) discounts. Baseload generators are running 24/7 for the efficiency. The price of electricity in the middle of the night can be a penny. A good time to charge electric cars and heat up thermal storage units.
The more I hear from you the more you sound like a utility guy. When you say we who is the we that you represent?
The problem with #3 is that net metering is not enough. We should implement a feed-in tariff program as others are doing world wide. Feed-in tariffs encourage the quick uptake of technologies that produce electricity from renewable sources such as wind and solar. They also give the people the opportunity to become produces of their own electricity. That is energy independence.
Let’s just stop all fossil fuels immediately. Wind and solar…yes!!! The answer to all this global warming. Forget all the resoursces we are sitting on and leave them. Let’s raise the cost of electricity and gas…like the pres says will happen so we all can pay more. He told us we will pay a lot more and why not? We need to step up and save the world and go broke doing it.I suggest we all stop breathing and omitting carbon dioxide and just pay ourself a carbon tax. We just don’t get it….another phony tax to steal more money from the taxpayer. Al Gore is laughing all the way to the bank.
Climate change will cost untold trillions in disaster recovery for coastal cities. Exxon/Mobil is not footing this bill, taxpayers are. Forcing coal and oil companies to pay for their pollution while subsidizing alternative energy is one way to transition to a non-petroleum based economy. Another way is to let the market dictate the terms of the transition. A market that is concerned with short term profits and is only concerned with environmental damage when they are forced by government to care. Either way gas and oil prices will rise. The only question should be whether we would rather have temporary cheap fuel now and warm the planet another few degrees or pay for the transition now and not have Lewiston beach front property in 50 years.
What happewned to the can do attitude. Do you like sending your energy dollars to the oil and gas companys? Buck up. The worlds not ending just changing.
Definitely check out the electric heating options with Central Maine Power and Bangor Hydro, and also look at wood pellets, natural gas and other alternatives (and, yes, heating oil). E2Tech will be hosting a forum on often-overlooked geothermal energy for homes and businesses on Dec. 13 — www.e2tech.org.
Definitely check out the electric heating options with Central Maine Power and Bangor Hydro, and also look at wood pellets, natural gas and other alternatives (and, yes, heating oil). E2Tech will be hosting a forum on often-overlooked geothermal energy for homes and businesses on Dec. 13 — www.e2tech.org.