Saving Billions Of Dollars And Watts

A two-year study by the Pew Center on Global Climate Change has found that carefully managed energy efficiency programs at several companies bring about huge cuts in energy use and spending as well as a smaller carbon dioxide footprint. The study surveyed 100 companies; six were reviewed in detail. Among those companies closely studied was Dow Chemical, whose energy efficiency program over the past 15 years saved the company $8.6 billion and helped it avoid 86 million tons of CO₂ emissions. Toyota, another company investigated, has reduced the amount of energy used to build a car by 30% since 2002. The report notes a dramatic shift between the 1970s and today in efforts to cut energy use. In the 1970s, change was driven mostly by high costs, but today, climate-change concerns often fuel efforts toward energy reduction. Another change, the report says, is that today’s energy efficiency efforts have migrated from the “boiler room” to the rest of the plant, and even the supply chain. Today’s energy efficiency actions also have broader impacts, affecting productivity, product design, and other activities not directly related to energy use. The report is available online at pewclimate.org.