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Americans consume energy in multiple ways: heating and cooling our homes, lighting our offices, transporting ourselves from one place to another, powering factories, among many other aspects of our daily lives and work.
 Sometimes energy consumption is obvious, as when we pump gas into a car. Many other times it is easy to forget that we are consuming energy. The fact of consumption is hidden by the ordinariness of turning on a switch, altering a thermostat, or cooking a meal. This everyday consumption, however, is massive: with only four per cent of the world's population, the U.S. consumes over a quarter of its energy.
When we consume energy, we affect the natural environment. This is true for virtually every kind of energy, although the kind and scale of impact varies greatly. Production of hydroelectric power involves damming rivers and thus harms fish runs. Windmills occupy huge amounts of open space. Even solar energy involves production of batteries and solar cells that have some impact.
While all energy production has environmental consequences, the production and use of fossil fuels cause by far the most negative effects, at virtually every step of the way.
Extraction of these fuels, such as drilling for oil or mining coal, often destroys forests, mountains, coastlines, and other natural areas. When crude oil is transported by sea to refineries, leaks and spills can destroy marine life for huge areas. Refineries produce toxic by products and air pollution, often in low-income areas, as do many power plants. Gas stations contaminate land and produce fumes that harm the health of employees and customers.
Thus even before energy gets to the consumer, its extraction, production, and transportation has caused environmental harm. The final consumption of energy produced by fossil fuels has further serious long-term consequences, of which global warming and air pollution are two of the most dangerous.
In energy, as in many other areas, it is not possible to eliminate our consumption of natural resources and our impact upon the environment. However, it is possible and urgently necessary for us to do two things: first, to learn about the environmental consequences - or the"ecological footprint" - or the energy we consume, and second, to find ways to reduce the negative impacts of our consumption - in other words, to consume energy more sustainably.
We need to make changes in how we consume energy, but this does not mean abandoning efficiency, comfort, or the use of technology. There are ways to consume energy more sustainably without huge personal or social sacrifice, as the stories below make clear.
Sustainable Consumption Success Stories
Individuals, households, and families
Americans who purchased appliances with the Energy Star seal saved more than 75 billion kilowatt hours last year. That total was enough to light more than 80 million homes for the entire year.
Businesses, schools, and universities
Shorebank Pacific in Ilwaco, Washington has built its new headquarters building with a variety of energy-efficiency and conservation measures, including high ceilings, in-floor radiant heating,passive solar construction, compact and tube fluorescent lighting, and double-glazed windows.
Despite a substantial increase in students in the past 5 years, the University of Florida at Gainesville has significantly reduced greenhouse gas emissions and overall energy use per capita and per square foot of building space, due to a systematic sustainability plan involving increased mass-transit, building lighting retrofits, and replacement of inefficient appliances.
A recycling and garbage collection service in California's Silicon Valley, Green Team, plans to convert its entire fleet of trucks to run exclusively on biodiesel manufactured from recycled french fry oils, other reclaimed cooking oils and sewage plant grease. Biodiesel has become increasingly popular as a relatively low-emission alternative to petroleum based fuels.
Communities
Community car shares, used by more than 150,000 people in 450 European cities, reduce individual automobile usage by over 50%, with consequent reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. Car shares are developing in a number of U.S. and Canadian cities, from San Diego to Toronto. Members pay each time they drive, so they use the most efficient transportation for the task - which often means not driving. Every shared car replaces 4-8 private cars.
In June 2001, Los Angeles became the first metropolitan area in the U.S. to require new transit buses and garbage trucks to operate on lower polluting, non-petroleum-based fuel sources, such as electricity, fuel cells and natural gas. The South Coast Air Quality Management System decided to switch after learning that diesel emissions caused most of the cancer risk in the region.
Also in Los Angeles, the City Council recently mandated that 10% of the city government's electricity purchases go for new clean, renewable energy sources. The "Green Power for a Green LA" program, the largest of its type in the nation, encourages customers to switch from polluting power plants to sources such as solar and wind.
National Policies
While the U.S. lags behind on environmentally-healthy energy policies, other nations are providing positive examples. Germany has committed to a drastic reduction in its dependence on fossil fuels. Over the next five years, the world's third largest economy will rapidly boost renewable energy and efficiency efforts and begin implementing a nationwide building insulation program. This program will put Germany on track to become one of the few industrial nations to fulfill its Kyoto pledge to cut greenhouse gases.
What You Can Do
The Sierra Club proposes three keys to more sustainable consumption of energy: first, greater conservation and efficiency in energy production and consumption; second, increased development of alternative energy; and third, cleaner, more efficient use of fossil fuels. People who care about the environment can take action in all these ways, as individuals, in their local communities, and as advocates for responsible energy policies.
Individuals, families, and households
Wash in cold water and dry your clothes on a laundry line
Improve home energy efficiency by insulating, lowering water heater temperature, buying efficeint (Energy Star) appliances, using fans instead of air conditioners, and using compact fluorescent bulbs
Carpool, walk, bike, or take the bus, and when you drive, combine errands to make fewer trips
Buy a fuel-efficient car and keep it maintained properly to maximize MPG
In your local community
Work for greenways and bike paths, improved bus service, car libraries, and other programs that make it easier, safer, and more pleasant for people to travel without using their cars
In your Sierra Club chapter and group
Conduct an audit of chapter energy use
Learn about energy sources in your community; tour a power plant; talk to local advocates of alternative energy sources like solar, wind, or hydrogen
At work or school
Turn out lights and computers in unused offices, bathrooms, and other rooms
Encourage your institution to purchase hybrids or high-efficiency cars
Public policy advocacy
Work for increased CAFE (MPG) standards, especially for SUVs and light trucks
Urge representatives to end subsidies of fossil fuels and inefficient cars and support research and development of alternative energy sources
Contacts
Sierra Club Global Warming campaign: http://www.sierraclub.org/globalwarming/
For information on solar and other alternative sources of energy and products, see Real Goods, www.realgoods.com
To learn more about the Federal government's Energy Star program, see www.energystar.gov
The Clean Air Conservancy's network of teachers and students raise funds to retire pollution allowances. The Clean Air Conservancy, 3130 Mayfield Rd Suite GE 012, Cleveland Heights,OH 44118; tel. 1-800-2-BUY-AIR; Fax: 216-932-8998; e-mail:cleanair@cleanairconservancy.org; Web: http://www.cleanairconservancy.org
National Biodiesel Board. Biodiesel is an alternative to petroleum based diesel.
Energy Saving Tips for Consumers
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