This piece originally appeared in The Register-Guard (Eugene, Oregon), on May 15, 2001.
Energy Conservation = Innovation, Not Deprivation
Recent statements by Vice President Cheney equating energy conservation with moral virtue and energy development with practicality echo a common but misguided theme: that conserving energy means forgoing comfort or doing without. For those of us old enough to remember the last energy crisis, this theme is symbolized by former President Jimmy Carter sitting in a dimly lit room exhorting the nation to put on a sweater and turn down the thermostat and lights. Conservation supposedly equals freezing in the dark.
Instead, it is more accurate and inspiring to think of conserving energy as an opportunity to express our ingenuity and creativity, all while learning more about how our world works. It's about moving beyond the currently accepted way of doing things. When we think about our homes or workplaces as systems, we begin to see how making small changes can lead to cascading positive effects.
A few examples:
Picture a house that uses extra-thick insulation, heat-trapping windows, and is designed to capture as much sunshine for heat and light as possible. Initially people think, "That will add too much to the cost of the building." But in fact, buildings designed in this way need very little extra heating, and therefore can do without complicated and problem-prone furnaces, heat pumps and duct work, a major cost of a new building. Zero-energy (or minimal energy) buildings are currently in operation and being built around the world. They are usually considered more comfortable than standard buildings because of natural daylighting and even heating.
Imagine a car that uses modern, lightweight-yet-strong materials in its body, dramatically reducing the weight of the car. Since the car now weighs less, the size of the engine can be reduced. Because the engine is smaller, the car weighs less again and can have an even smaller, more efficient engine. Making the car more aerodynamic and recapturing forward energy while braking makes it even more efficient. Depending on the specific mix of features, gas mileage can be improved four-fold. With a fill-up approaching $50 a tank, who wouldn't want a more energy-efficient vehicle? The first generation of these autos is already on the road, and perform just as well as old-style cars.
We are starting to realize how energy-intensive (and hence, how polluting) the "clean" computer industry is. The rapid growth of the Internet and use of personal computers is responsible for a noticeable increase in electricity use. The computer component that uses the largest amount of energy is the monitor. Liquid crystal display (LCD) screens, like those used on portable computers, require far less power during use, and are smaller and lighter, so they require less energy to build as well. Switching to LCD monitors as the standard computer display is energy-efficient and usually results in a sharper, easier-to-read screen.
A highly effective way to reduce energy use is to use less stuff, and to have the stuff you do use be produced as close to you as possible. Manufacturing every product requires energy, so products with fewer virgin materials require less energy, both to build and to transport. Producing aluminum is especially energy-intensive, so using products with recycled aluminum saves energy. The same goes for paper products. Using recycled paper made in the Northwest saves energy over using new paper transported from the Southeastern U.S. Unlike years ago, recycled products are equivalent in quality to those from new materials.
None of these examples require new technology. They simply combine existing technologies in new and insightful ways to save energy. All of these improvements let us do the same things we do now, but with much less energy. They also provide the additional benefits of reducing carbon dioxide emissions (slowing global warming), reducing the need for water to generate electricity (saving more for fish and farmers), and reducing other toxins (leading to cleaner air and water).
Contrary to the rhetoric surrounding the Kyoto global warming treaty, reducing carbon dioxide emissions (primarily by reducing energy use) will not cost businesses large amounts of money, it will save them large amounts of money. There are many, many examples of forward-thinking businesses reducing their use of energy, materials and costs by devising better processes (especially by encouraging innovation in their employees!).
During this immediate energy crisis, turning down the heat and turning off lights when you leave the room are useful short-term ways to save energy. In the medium and long-term, energy conservation has nothing to do with freezing in the dark and everything to do with learning to think about systems--learning how the various parts of our world interact and affect each other, so that we can make smart choices about how to do things more cheaply and simply.
Chris Halaska, Ph.D. <x2fer@socialdesign.org> is co-founder of social design, an organization focused on community use and control of technology.