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Solar Utilities Network projects How do YOU use energy? Drawing a baseline by Michael Potts |
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We all consume fossil energy. In the last century north americans have
learned to use up phenomenal volumes. In one year, the average
north american is responsible for reducing the sum of global stored
energy by more than ten 18th Century north americans used
in their lifetimes, a five-hundred-fold increase. Of course, these
heritage fuels cannot be replaced in millions of years.
The Solar Utilities Network bookshelf has several titles dealing with these matter if you wish to delve more deeply.
For the most part, we are unconscious of the energy we squander. Our vehicle addiction is beyond reason. At home, we throw away one out of every two units of energy we buy. Our appliances are inefficient, we use too many of them, and we use the wrong kind of energy in many of our activites. For example, using electricity for heat (in electric water heaters, stoves, or ovens) wastes up to 80% of the original energy. The all-electric dream home of the 70s has turned into a costly energy-hog nightmare in the 90s. Reckoning Home EnergyYou are here invited to participate in two exercises. In the first, you will be asked to record a baseline of the energy you consumed in the last four quarters. By noting how many kilowatt-hours of electricity, therms of heating fuel, cords of firewood, gallons of gasoline and water you consumed, and how many gallons of sewage and barrels of garbage you produced, you quantify your impact of your energy behaviors from the immediate past.
The point of this exercise is to promote awareness of energy consumption.
On the form you will note a column marked something happens here
and we sincerely hope something does. Almost everyone agrees,
we simply cannot continue wasting energy at the present rate. In
fact, many serious thinkers believe we will find ways in the next
decade to reduce our per capita energy consumption by a large
amount …or perish. We believe we know how to resist this last idea,
and invite you to work with us.
Experts from the Solar Utilities Network help clients reduce
energy waste using this form as our starting point. With this
information in hand, we can show you how to live a much more sensible
energy life. Our clients report that the information
and techniques learned in their work with us pay them back for course
costs within months, and that they are easily able to reduce energy
expenses by 50%, using the surplus to finance further measures for
energy efficiency. For information about our consulting services
please email us at the
address shown below.
Although site is all-important when building a new house, we are often
amazed at how much energy can be found and used in the ambient
of existing houses. Our students systematically find a quarter
to a third of the energy they need to run their homes "lying
around". Again, we invite you to join one of our courses
to learn how to harvest this free, renewable energy.
Here's the lowest-hanging fruit: Get your hot water from the SUN with Solar Water Heating
if you haven't seen it already,
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 Regime change begins at home. Participate! |
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updated 1 January 2005 : 16:37 Caspar (Pacific) time this site generated with 100% recycled electrons! send website feedback to the Solarnet webster |