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Page added on March 2, 2013
US Now Leads in Energy Waste
The United States has taken the lead yet again, but this time, we may not be so proud. We have surpassed every nation, including China, in the category of energy waste. Yes, our country wastes the most energy in the world. The U.S. has an energy efficiency of 42 percent, which means 58 percent of all the energy we produce is wasted! How can this happen?!
No single person or enterprise is responsible for our latest “achievement.” Every industry (manufacturing, transportation, residential, commercial, etc.) has aided in the wastefulness of this country, some more than others. According to the U.S. Energy Administration, estimates show that the industrial sector consumes more energy every year than any other U.S. entity. It has also established that energy use by the residential, transportation, and commercial sectors has drastically increased each year for the past 60 years, and it continues to rise.
Despite the growth of renewable energy sources, the bulk of our power is still produced using coal, petroleum, and natural gas, which tend to lead to inefficiency. The New York Times published a study in 2008 that calculated the main causes of energy waste. It estimated that 71 percent of energy generated for transportation is wasted, 66 percent is wasted in electricity, 20 percent is wasted in commercial and residential buildings, and 20 percent is wasted in industry or manufacturing.
A major culprit across all industries is heat waste, the byproduct of inefficient technology. As a relative example, think of a traditional incandescent light bulb. When left on for hours, we notice that the area around the bulb is extremely hot, which indicates that the bulb is not only producing light, but heat as well. Since the sole purpose of a light bulb is to produce light, all of the energy that goes into producing the heat is a complete waste. This is part of the reason why our government is slowly phasing out incandescent bulbs and encouraging the purchase of more efficient bulbs, like CFLs. Although this is a small scaled example, the same concept can be applied to inefficient machinery in a manufacturing plant.
So how do we tame our inefficient tendencies? We’ve all heard of ways to make our homes more energy efficient, but have we actually made any changes? Adjust the thermostat at night or when no one is home, upgrade to more efficient lighting, wash your clothes in cold water when you can, make sure your air filters are clean, and for goodness sake, turn off your lights when no one is using them.
When it comes to transportation, we all know public is the way to go in terms of energy efficiency. But when public transportation is not an option, carpool with your neighbors, ride your bike or walk, and combine shopping trips to limit drive time.
Businesses and industrial facilities have the opportunity to make a big difference, since they are the ones who consume (and waste!) most of our country’s energy. Investing in lighting upgrades and adjusting thermostat temperatures are two methods that still apply. Other small changes include limiting the time air conditioners run, installing a smart meter to monitor energy use, and shutting off computers, printers and other energy vampires at the end of every day. On a larger scale, businesses are encouraged to enroll in a demand response program to help limit wasted energy and assist the electric grid in times of excess demand.
The fact that the U.S. is the least energy efficient country in the world may be unbelievable, but it must not be ignored. Each one of us is able to make at least one change in our daily lives. Whether it be carpooling, switching to better light bulbs, or looking for additional ways to reduce heat waste, each change will add up to make a huge difference. If your business is interested in gaining information on ways to become more efficient, look into working with an energy consultant. They will be able to customize a plan for your facility. Energy waste has been present in the U.S. for quite some time, so let’s be polite and let another country take the lead in this category.
11 Comments on "US Now Leads in Energy Waste"
J-Gav on Sat, 2nd Mar 2013 11:26 pm
“May be unbelievable?” Why would it be unbelievable? That’s what empires have done since time immemorable. Consult all you want, eventually you’ll come up against the same uncomfortable, contrary and irreducible bio-physical realities.
rollin on Sat, 2nd Mar 2013 11:35 pm
Where is the references or list to compare with other countries? What is the source of the energy waste data?
Kenz300 on Sun, 3rd Mar 2013 1:26 am
Start using LED light bulbs. They save 805 of your energy use when compared to an incandescent bulb.
Save money on your electric bill and save energy.
Start with the two most used lights in your home or office.
BillT on Sun, 3rd Mar 2013 1:31 am
Actually, we waste even more than the amount listed. And always have. America is a wasteful, spoiled country. We coulod easily live with 1/3 the energy we use now and not have a big change in lifestyle.
But to suggest that corporations, or even individuals, are going to spend large sums of money to install energy saving methods/machines is not realistic either. Few have the incentive nor the means to do so. Most are struggling to survive the contraction and are not interested in the distant future. If a heat producing bulb costs $1 and a more efficient bulb costs $10, guess which bulb will be bought. Yep! The $1 one, even though the other one will pay for itself over time and save energy.
The best way to save energy is just to turn off anything not being used. Especially all of the things with ‘standby’ or ‘instant on’ features that are on all the time. There are inexpensive ways to do that and it does save on your electric bill. Again, higher energy costs are the best way to force savings.
smartermeters on Sun, 3rd Mar 2013 1:37 am
At least incandescent bulbs don’t disrupt power quality, have a high power factor, can’t catch fire, don’t contain mercury and have a healthy sprectrum of light. Compact fluorescents should be avoided at all costs. LEDs aren’t bad, but I’ll take a $.75 25 watt incandescent over a $15 10 watt LED any day.
DC on Sun, 3rd Mar 2013 3:53 am
In our system, waste and in-efficeny = Big Profit$$$s for the various energy cartels. Making N.A. style matchstick and PVC shacks more ‘efficient’ is almost pointless. You can literally spend 10s of thousands of dollars to stop your energy sucking shack from dumping heat into the atmosphere, but it will take decades to pay for itself. So, your probably asking, why not build things properly in the first place? Well, the problem with that is is that a design philosophy like that doesnt create enough scope for corporate profits.
Therefore, we build everything like shyt. A house for example, built of solid masonry, concrete,(without those worthless re-enforcing rods), brick, whathaveyou, with ultra-thick windows and designed to last for a century or more, and heated with waste heat from industry or power plants, simply isnt very profitable for the suburban sprawl complex. Chemically treated matchsticks where the rot sets in as its being built-MUCH more profitable for everyone concerned, except for the home-owners that is. But the home-owners dont even mind that much because they have been trained since birth to think low-quality shyt-boxes you go into debt-slavery for 30 years to own, even as the house itself slowly disintegrates around them-as perfectly ‘normal’. And the huge energy infrastructure required to keep our drafty rotting homes heated or cooled, is hugely profitable(on paper). Efficiency never crosses our CEO’s minds, because they not rewarded for building anything well, rather the opposite.
And that is, and always will be our problem. And its way too late to even begin to fix any of it.
Norm on Sun, 3rd Mar 2013 6:14 am
A common light fixture, is for a residential 1980’s suburban kitchen, with 4 panels total. Each 2′ x 4′. So we are talking about a 4′ x 8′ lighting panel.
The overwhelming tradition is to put 8 flourescent tubes behind such panels. With traditional ballasts this is 390W to light one kitchen.
Not only that, this common technique so thoroughly overheats the ballasts that they tend to fail, with tar dripping out of them. I think thats why I first got interested.
With ongoing casual experimenting, I eventually had the whole thing meticulously rebuilt to use 58W total (electronic ballasts, and 2 fluorescent tubes).
I had to monkey a bit with the ballast choices, the tube choices, and the type of plastic diffuser, to make it really sparkle.
Thats 75% less tubes, and its 85% less energy.
The light is pure, crisp, and perfect.
I found that fascinating and I often show it to people. Nobody cares. And it certainly will never be commercialized.
Why? Because America is a land of stupid ignorant fat lazy slobs, who think they are ‘entitled’. And its also a land of greedy selfish billionaire swindlers, like Mitt Romney. So nobody gives a damn that I saved 85% of the energy.
But I am still saving it. Good, cause I bet the electric rates keep going up as all these fat dummies discover their entitlement mentality wont keep those generators turning.
rollin on Sun, 3rd Mar 2013 3:10 pm
This is just a rehash of a 2009 blurb pusblished in phys.org by a non-scientist. No real value here.
BillT on Mon, 4th Mar 2013 1:35 am
Ah, but they are facts that are just as important today as before. Maybe more so, rollin. We DO waste at least 60% of the energy we use. When you electric bill doubles and tripples, I bet you will think conservation is more important.
And, DC, those reinforcing bars ARE necessary in construction. They are the strength that makes concrete construction possible. You may live in a warm climate that does not have a freeze/thaw cycle or in a place that does not experience earthquakes, but if a quake were to happen, those rebars will hold your house together until you can get out of it, if you are lucky.
rollin on Mon, 4th Mar 2013 2:05 pm
BillT, take a course in physics and one in thermodynamics. The “waste” energy spoken of here is primarilly due to thermodynamic properties of the engines and furnaces we use. This is not somebody leaving on a light bulb when not needed or not insulating a ceiling, this is the inherent thermodynamics of fossil fuel systems.
The best we can ever get out of an ICE is 50% efficiency and that is only in giant diesel engines that drive ships. Most of them run under 30%. The rest goes off as heat. Nature of the beast. It’s not that Americans are wasteful by nature, it’s that they use machines.
Of course you can use a hayfield to feed a horse, captures about three percent of the solar energy and you get a small portion of the horse’s energy. The rest goes off as heat.
Kenz300 on Tue, 5th Mar 2013 2:04 pm
Save energy ….save money……
Buy LED light bulbs….
Buy energy efficient appliances…..
Buy an energy efficient alternative fueled vehicle….
The cheap and easy ways of the past are not the best for the long run. Long term payback must be considered.
Walk more, ride a bicycle more and take mass transit more.
The price of energy is going up.
What changes will you make to reduce your energy costs?