Energy policy encompasses various strategies designed to enhance energy efficiency, promote renewable energies and decrease carbon dioxide emissions. These policies may involve price setting or quantity forcing policies as part of their solutions.
American innovation is creating new technology and opportunities to foster a cleaner energy economy, but to maintain sustainable development it must also include protections for iconic landscapes; compensation for taxpayer-owned lands used for energy development; as well as clear mitigation and reclamation requirements.
The United States needs a clean energy economy
Transitioning to cleaner energy sources boosts economic growth, increases local employment, and enhances the health and well-being of Americans. By decreasing air pollution and climate change impacts that cause premature deaths as well as harm the environment, clean energy transition can bring great rewards to economic development, employment growth, health improvement, and environmental preservation.
A federal Clean Energy Standard would provide the incentive and framework necessary for rapid clean energy development, meeting greenhouse gas reduction targets and creating jobs. Furthermore, such an infrastructure would ensure all technologies capable of offering comparable or better grid services could compete on an equal playing field.
Nearly nine in ten Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents believe the federal government should encourage wind, solar power and electric vehicle production (87% and 73%, respectively). They were evenly split on whether oil drilling or coal mining should be discouraged; almost all Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents supported encouraging renewables through tax credits or financial incentives, promoting responsible renewable energy development on public lands as well.
The U.S. electricity sector is responsible for the largest percentage of carbon dioxide emissions
Electric power sectors account for a third of energy-related carbon dioxide emissions in the US. Emissions peaked in 2005 but have since decreased due to reduced use of fossil fuels and greater production using carbon-free sources like nuclear, hydroelectricity, wind energy and solar power.
Electricity consumption also creates environmental problems unrelated to its generation. For instance, climate change related CO2 emissions contribute to global warming which in turn causes extreme weather events, risks to biodiversity, loss of fertile soil and desertification – all serious effects.
Governments can address these challenges by creating policies to reduce energy consumption and emissions, such as by encouraging renewable and low-carbon technologies and working collaboratively with other nations to find global energy solutions. They also play an integral role in informing the public of these issues while raising awareness of why conservation of energy should occur.
The U.S. electricity sector could generate one-half of its electricity from zero-carbon emitting sources by 2030
NREL’s analysis indicates that we could achieve up to half of our electricity generation from carbon-free sources by 2030 using current technology – thus potentially avoiding up to 85,000 premature deaths and cutting emissions by 27% across the economy.
Since 2005, energy-related carbon dioxide (CO2) levels have seen a decrease. This trend can be attributed to shifting away from coal production in favor of natural gas generation which emits less CO2. Furthermore, increases in renewables and nuclear power have contributed to this reduction.
The Clean Power Plan reduces power plant carbon pollution that causes soot and smog that harms people’s health, advances clean energy innovation, development, and deployment, and sets forth an overarching long-term climate change strategy. Furthermore, states and utilities have flexibility in meeting pollution standards while still offering reliable and affordable electricity supplies to consumers. According to our survey findings, 69% of Americans consider developing alternative sources such as wind and solar to be top priorities compared with only 31% who favor increasing oil, coal, and natural gas production as top priority versus expanding oil/coal/natural gas production as top priority.
The U.S. electricity sector needs to be more efficient
As markets increasingly move toward lower carbon energy sources, new challenges have arisen that necessitate more effective and adaptable power system operations. Policy makers must reassess their current planning processes and policies if they wish to effectively address such hurdles.
Attaining a more sustainable electricity sector requires an economy-wide carbon pricing policy that makes fossil-fuel-based technologies costlier to operate, encouraging their electrification. Such policies also have the added advantage of lowering energy prices throughout society.
Policy decisions on electrification can deliver many advantages to local communities, from improved indoor and outdoor air quality in buildings to access to clean energy that’s affordable, renewable, and creates jobs and empower workers. Furthermore, electrification helps mitigate negative job impacts caused by natural gas switching off in favor of electric equipment and appliances – helping ensure a smooth energy transition process across America.