Not all electricity bills are created equal, and today we’d like to commend a local utility company on providing their customers with an exceptionally detailed one. Volunteer Energy Cooperative (VEC) provides information and advice beyond what the average national utility bill presents. Last November, John Wilson, SACE’s Research Director, shared with you a study about [...]
The federal Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report in December that takes a hard look at the Tennessee Valley Authority’s (TVA) energy efficiency efforts and capital expenditure planning. The report recommends that (1) TVA complete its energy efficiency potential study and use that to inform its future energy efficiency efforts, and (2) that the [...]
I wanted to wrap up our holiday series by addressing a final, major seasonal activity that is generally high in energy consumption: holiday entertaining. I know that party planning can be a daunting task at times, and just having a few relatives and friends over for a quiet evening can require hours of preparation. There’s [...]
Over the last couple weeks, I’ve shared with you some tips and tricks for minimizing the energy impact of your holiday cooking exploits and your shopping and gift giving activities. However, I’ve not yet touched on the aesthetics of the season. No winter season is complete without the ornamental lights, or the cheerful air of [...]
We set a new record in 2011, but not one that anyone would want to brag about. This year, the U.S. has been battered by 12 separate natural disasters, each sporting a $1 billion price tag. The final number could be higher still as damages from Tropical Storm Lee and a late October snowstorm in [...]
Energy efficient lighting has never been a more plausible option for your home than it is today. Awareness of coming changes in residential light bulbs is growing. We’ve all seen that the CFL industry has continued it’s upward trend over the last couple of years, but LED markets are expanding rapidly as well; the US [...]
Earlier this week, I shared with you a list of tips and tricks for minimizing the energy impact of your holiday cooking activities. As today is one of the busiest shopping days of the year in the U.S., it seemed only fitting to continue our Holiday Efficiency Series with a focus on environmentally-conscious gift giving [...]
This blog was written by SACE intern Jeannie McKinney. Well readers, it’s that time of year again: the time when temperatures go way down, lights come on earlier, and energy bills go way up. In addition to encouraging winterizing your house for the colder months, we here at SACE wanted to share with you some [...]
As discussed in the main post, Price signals don’t always work, creating a meaningful connection between energy price signals and consumers is challenged by a number of market barriers. Those market barriers are particularly acute when it comes to energy waste (but are also present for customer-sited renewable energy); overcoming barriers to energy efficiency requires [...]
Bob Inglis’ call to rely on a carbon tax as the main weapon to fight climate change is based on the idea that price signals, or the “power of free markets,” are central to the solution to climate change. Paradoxically, ensuring that price signals connect meaningfully with the energy consumer often requires government regulation, mandates, [...]
