At a Time When Global Climate is Changing at Alarming and Extreme Rates

7/17/2019 At a Time When Global Climate is Changing at Alarming and Extreme Rates

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At a time when global climate is changing at alarming and extreme rates,

governments and organisations are calling on everyone to do their share of

preserving the planet. This is not only to prevent calamities brought about by the

abuse we have done to Mother Nature, but also to make sure that future

generations will still be able to enjoy the beauty and gifts that this world has to

oer. And what better way to help than to start saving electricity at home.

conserving energy, by taking actions like insulating/weatherstripping your home and purchasing EnergyStar certified (high efficiency) appliances, is usually the smartest, most economical and most potentenvironmental action you can take. Cleaner, greener energy supplies may provide the cleanest suppliesof needed electricity, but minimiing the energy we need is still the first step to take before selecting thecleanest, greenest supplies.

!henever you save energy, you not only save money, you also reduce the demand for such fossil fuelsas coal, oil, and natural gas. "ess burning of fossil fuels also means lower emissions of carbon dio#ide(C$%), the primary contributor to global warming, and other pollutants.

&ou do not have to do without to achieve these savings. 'here is now an energy efficient alternative foralmost every kind of appliance or light fi#ture. 'hat means that consumers have a real choice and thepower to change their energy use on a revolutionary scale.

'he average merican produces about *,*** pounds of C$% emissions per year. 'ogether, we usenearly a million dollars worth of energy every minute, night and day, every day of the year. +y e#ercisingeven a few of the following steps, you can cut your annual emissions by thousands of pounds and yourenergy bills by a significant amount

Home improvements

Consider some of these energy-saving investments. 'hey save money in the long run, and their C$%savings can often be measured in tons per year. Energy savings usually have the best payback whenmade at the same time you are making other maor home improvements.

1. Insulate your walls and ceilings. 'his can save %* to * percent of home heating billsand reduce C$% emissions by 0* to %0** pounds per year. 1f you live in a colderclimate, consider superinsulating. 'hat can save 2.2 tons of C$% per year for gas-heatedhomes, 3.3 tons per year for oil heat, or % tons per year for electric heat. (1f you have

electric heat, you might also consider switching to more efficient gas or oil.)

2. 4odernie your windows. 5eplacing all your ordinary windows with argon filled, double-glaed windows saves %. tons of C$% per year for homes with gas heat, .6 tons of oilheat, and 6.3 tons for electric heat.

3. 7lant shade trees and paint your house a light color if you live in a warm climate, or adark color if you live in a cold climate. 5eductions in energy use resulting from shade



trees and appropriate painting can save up to %. tons of C$% emissions per year. (Eachtree also directly absorbs about %2 pounds of C$% from the air annually.)

4. Weatherize your home or apartment, using caulk and weather stripping to plug air leaksaround doors and windows. Caulking costs less than 80 per window, and weatherstripping is under 80* per door. 'hese steps can save up to 00** pounds of C$% per

year for a typical home. sk your utility company for a home energy audit to find outwhere your home is poorly insulated or energy inefficient. 'his service may be providedfree or at low cost. 4ake sure it includes a check of your furnace and air conditioning.

Home appliances

5. 'urn your refrigerator down. 5efrigerators account for about %*9 of :ousehold electricity use.;se a thermometer to set your refrigerator temperature as close to < degrees and your freeeras close to degrees as possible. 4ake sure that its energy saver switch is turned on. lso,check the gaskets around your refrigerator/freeer doors to make sure they are clean and sealedtightly.

6. Set your clothes washer to the warm or cold water setting, not hot. Switching from hot to warmfor two loads per week can save nearly 2** pounds of C$% per year if you have an electric waterheater, or 02* pounds for a gas heater.

7. 4ake sure your dishwasher is full when you run it and use the energy saving setting, if available,to allow the dishes to air dry. &ou can also turn off the drying cycle manually. =ot using heat in thedrying cycle can save %* percent of your dishwasher>s total electricity use.

8. 'urn down your water heater thermostat. 'hermostats are often set to 0* degrees ? when 0%*is usually fine. Each 0* degree reduction saves @** pounds of C$% per year for an electric waterheater, or * pounds for a gas heater. 1f every household turned its water heater thermostatdown %* degrees, we could prevent more than 2 million tons of annual C$% emissions - thesame amount emitted by the entire nations of Auwait or "ibya.

9. Select the most energy-efficient models when you replace your old appliances. "ook for theEnergy Star "abel - your assurance that the product saves energy and prevents pollution. +uy theproduct that is sied to your typical needs - not the biggest one available. ?ront loading washingmachines will usually cut hot water use by @* to <*9 compared to typical machines. 5eplacing atypical 06< refrigerator with a new energy-efficient model, saves 0. tons of C$% per year.1nvesting in a solar water heater can save .6 tons of C$% annually.

Home heating and cooling

10. +e careful not to overheat or overcool rooms. 1n the winter, set your thermostat at @3 degrees indaytime, and 22 degrees at night. 1n the summer, keep it at <3. "owering your thermostat ust twodegrees during winter saves @ percent of heating-related C$% emissions. 'hat>s a reduction of%* pounds of C$% per year for a typical home.

11. Clean or replace air filters as recommended. Energy is lost when air conditioners and hot-airfurnaces have to work harder to draw air through dirty filters. Cleaning a dirty air conditioner filtercan save 2 percent of the energy used. 'hat could save 0<2 pounds of C$% per year.



Small investments that pay off

12. +uy energy-efficient compact fluorescent bulbs for your most-used lights. lthough they costmore initially, they save money in the long run by using only 0/ the energy of an ordinaryincandescent bulb and lasting 3-0% times longer. 'hey provide an eBuivalent amount of bright,attractive light. $nly 0*9 of the energy consumed by a normal light bulb generates light. 'he rest

ust makes the bulb hot. 1f every merican household replaced one of its standard light bulbs withan energy efficient compact fluorescent bulb, we would save the same amount of energy as alarge nuclear power plant produces in one year. 1n a typical home, one compact fluorescent bulbcan save %@* pounds of C$% per year.

13. !rap your water heater in an insulating acket, which costs ust 80* to 8%*. 1t can save 00** lbs.of C$% per year for an electric water heater, or %%* pounds for a gas heater.

14. ;se less hot water by installing low-flow shower heads. 'hey cost ust 80* to 8%* each, deliver

an invigorating shower, and save ** pounds of C$% per year for electrically heated water, or 3*pounds for gas-heated water.

Getting around

15. !henever possible, walk, bike, car pool, or use mass transit. Every gallon of gasoline yousave avoids %% pounds of C$% emissions. 1f your car gets %2 miles per gallon, for e#ample, andyou reduce your annual driving from 0%,*** to 0*,*** miles, you>ll save 03** pounds of C$%.

16. !hen you ne#t buy a car, choose one that gets good mileage. 1f your new car gets * miles pergallon instead of %2, and you drive 0*,*** miles per year, you>ll reduce your annual C$%emissions by ,** pounds.

Reduce, reuse, recycle

17. 5educe the amount of waste you produce by buying minimally packaged goods, choosingreusable products over disposable ones, and recycling. ?or every pound of waste you eliminate

or recycle, you save energy and reduce emissions of C$% by at least 0 pound. Cutting down your garbage by half of one large trash bag per week saves at least 00** pounds of C$% per year.4aking products with recycled materials, instead of from scratch with raw materials, uses * to229 less for paper products, 9 less for glass, and a whopping 6*9 less for aluminum.

18. 1f your car has an air conditioner, make sure its coolant is recovered and recycled whenever youhave it serviced. 1n the ;nited States, leakage from auto air conditioners is the largest single



source of emissions of chlorofluorocarbons (C?Cs), which damage the oone layer as well asadd to global warming. 'he C?Cs from one auto air conditioner can add the eBuivalent of 3**pounds of C$% emissions per year.

Business and community

19. !ork with your employer to implement these and other energy-efficiency and waste-reductionmeasures in your office or workplace. ?orm or oin local citiens> groups and work with localgovernment officials to see that these measures are taken in schools and public buildings.

20. Aeep track of the environmental voting records of candidates for office. Stay abreast ofenvironmental issues on both local and national levels, and write or call your elected officials toe#press your concerns about energy efficiency and global warming.

!mproving the conditions of living" #ecreasing fuel poverty" Mitigating social ine$uality

%elevance%educing energy use in your home saves you money, increases our energy security,and reduces the pollution that is emitted from non"renewable sources of energy. !fyou are planning to install a small renewable energy system to make your ownelectricity, such as a solar electric system or small wind turbine, reducing yourelectricity loads is the &rst step'saving you money by allowing you to purchase asmaller system.

There are many ways you can reduce electricity use in your home(

Appliances and electronics "" )urchase energy"e*cient products and operatethem e*ciently. +ighting "" )urchase energy"e*cient products, operate them e*ciently, andincorporate more daylighting into your home using energy"e*cient windows andskylights. lectric space heating and cooling "" )urchase energy"e*cient electric systemsand operate them e*ciently. !ncorporate passive solar design concepts into yourhome, which include using energy"e*cient windows. )roperly insulate and air sealyour home. -elect an energy"e*cient heating system that doesnt use electricity. lectric water heating "" )urchase an energy"e*cient electric water heater andoperate it e*ciently. /r select an energy"e*cient water heater that doesnt useelectricity.



Energy conservation refers to reducing energy consumption through using less of an energy

service. nergy conservation differs from efficient energy use! "hich refers to using less energy

for a constant service.#1$ %or e&ample! driving less is an e&ample of energy conservation. 'riving

the same amount "ith a higher mileage vehicle is an e&ample of energy efficiency. nergy

conservation and efficiency are (oth energy reduction techni)ues.

ven though energy conservation reduces energy services! it can result in increased

environmental )uality! national security! personal financial security and higher savings.#2$ *t is at

the top of the sustaina(le energy hierarchy.#citation needed $ *t also lo"ers energy costs (y preventing

future resource depletion

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Efficient_energy_use

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Energy_conservation#cite_note-1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_environment


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_security

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_security


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Savings



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Energy_hierarchy

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed




http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_security


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Savings


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Energy_hierarchy


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Efficient_energy_use



















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At a Time When Global Climate is Changing at Alarming and Extreme Rates