Efficiency First

According to the report, Unlocking Energy Efficiency in the U.S. Economy, an initial investment of $520 billion in energy-saving measurers for non-transportation industries could reduce annual energy consumption by 23 percent by 2020. The energy savings would also prevent emissions of 1.1 gigatons of greenhouse gases, teh equivalent of taking the entire U.S. fleet of passenger vechicles off the road. “The nation can achieve the necessary and timely transformation of its energy system if it embarks on an accelerated and sustained level of technology development, demonstration, and deployment along sveral parallel paths between now and 2020,” the report concludes. The study is part of an ongoing project of the NRC, which includes the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering, that provides technical expertise to Members of Congress on energy and environmental policy.