A Nearly Inexhaustible Source of Energy: Conservation
Unlike any other species on this planet, humans have made significant changes to the surface of the earth. Rather than adapting to their environment, humans successfully changed it to suit their way of life. Over the millennia, this has led to unprecedented wealth. However, this wealth is unevenly distributed. To date, a high level of prosperity automatically results in high per capita energy consumption. This satellite image of planet earth by night shows very accurately where living standards are the highest and where they are lower:
Economic progress and energy consumption are proportional. Therefore it comes as no surprise that the United States, the European Union, Japan and the rapidly developing coastal regions in East Asia are having some of the highest energy consumption rates in the world. As long as only a tiny fraction of the earth’s population enjoyed a high living standard, the visible downsides were negligible. But today, a significantly larger portion of the world’s rapidly growing population is enjoying a high and energy intensive living standard and their number is growing quickly. At the same time, the world’s reserves of fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas are gradually becoming depleted. And in addition, the negative implications of conventional energy generation for the environment are becoming more and more obvious.
The mega-trends of population growth, global industrialization and urbanization are intensifying climate change, resource scarcity and pollution. Unless a more sustainable foundation for economic growth can be found, the deterioration of these problems can undermine the basis of our prosperity.
Therefore, significant changes need to be made to the way we generate energy to make it more sustainable. This means increasingly tapping energy sources that are less harmful to the environment and not as scarce as many fossil fuels. But this diversification and enhancement of our energy mix takes a lot of time and money.
Hence, it is necessary to address the problem from the consumption side as well. Key to a quick, effective and feasible solution is to decouple economic growth and energy consumption. In other words, we have to seek ways to increase our prosperity while reducing our consumption of energy. Those two goals long thought to be in opposition can become complementary.
If there’s a tendency of growing energy demand, one can respond to it in two different ways:
1.) Building more power plants to increase the supply of energy. This approach ties up financial and natural resources alike.
2.) Making energy consumption more efficient to reduce demand for energy. These efficiency gains can soak up rising energy demand elsewhere without the need to build additional power plants.
Obviously, the second approach is smarter and more sustainable. By squeezing more out of every kilowatt-hour of electricity or gallon of gas, you eliminate waste. Eliminating waste benefits the society and the environment.
Buildings account for 40% of the total energy consumption and 70% of the total electricity consumption in the United States. The potential for savings is enormous. Thus, a “green” building can be significantly cheaper to operate than a conventional building.
Especially for businesses with large production facilities, energy is a major cost factor. Optimizations to the production process as well as to the lighting, water circulation and air-conditioning systems can trim a factory’s energy consumption. The resulting cost savings can quickly recover the initial costs of the energy conservation equipment.
When building a new factory, a design aimed at energy efficiency can bring down expenses for water and electricity even further. An optimal design reduces the need for artificial light by using natural light as well as occupancy sensors. Better insulation and facades that reflect a large share of the sunlight reduces heat absorption. In combination with measures to improve the air circulation within the building, less cooling in summer and less heating in winter is necessary. Over the life of the facility, the achieved savings can match or exceed the initial construction costs. Another benefit is the lowered carbon footprint. Lower energy consumption translates into lower energy bills and lower carbon emissions. Consequently, a green factory is not only a question of environmental responsibility. From an economic point of view, green buildings are the best response to rising and volatile energy prices.
Private homes can take advantage of modern energy conservation technology as well. By monitoring electricity consumption throughout the house to detect sources of energy waste, a household could cut its monthly energy bill when replacing inefficient home appliances and adjusting the thermostat to avoid unnecessary cooling and heating. As the construction of a smarter electricity grid advances, appliances can be timed to take advantage of cheaper electricity rates during off-peak hours.
Since energy prices are bound to increase in the medium and long term, the savings achievable through energy conservation efforts will increase and hence, demand for those technologies will help to support a domestic energy technology industry.
The global market for energy saving technology is enormous. China, a country struggling to meet its energy needs, is going to invest heavily into energy conservation technology for buildings. A massive immigration into the urban centers of the country is under way and the infrastructure, buildings and factories built today determine the energy consumption of the future. Instead of further increasing its reliance on foreign suppliers of fossil fuels, China will use every opportunity to reduce energy waste.
