Energy Efficiency In California

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Introduction
California has been leading the nation with its energy efficiency programs since the 1970’s. Per capita electricity consumption has remained relatively constant for the state, yet the remainder of the US has increased by about 33 percent (California Public Utilities Commission). With concerns of energy security and climate changes playing a large role in policy making, it is important to understand how California has managed to maintain its electricity consumption. The purpose of this brief report is to provide the reader with some simple statistics based on historical data, review a history of the regulations that have attributed to the energy reduction goals, and see the economic benefits gained from investing in energy efficiency. …show more content…
average. The lower than average site consumption results in households spending 30% less for energy than the U.S. average. Compared to the U.S. average, a greater share of California residents use natural gas for heating (59%). Due to the mild climate, 14% of California homes are not heated. More than 40% of California households do not use air conditioning, but those that do predominantly rely on central air conditioning for cooling. Electricity does not come cheap to Californians, ranking 6th highest in the residential market in 2104. (U.S. Energy Information …show more content…
A continuous rise in oil prices throughout the 1970’s and mid 1980’s helped PG&E and other energy suppliers understand that they might be better off pursuing alternative means of energy production rather than continuing to purchase costly energy goods. Several major state organizations, including the CEC, created a new business model that separated profits from the quantities of energy production.
California legislature called attention to the importance of energy efficiency and established energy reduction goals with the enactment of Assembly Bill 2021 of 2006. The bill required that the state’s various energy related agencies set goals and strategies to reduce the overall energy demand for the following 10 years.
There are numerous state specific policies and regulations that contribute to the overall reduced energy usage. The chart below shows the total electric savings from a combination of efficiency policies and standards. The combined savings are estimated at 70,000 GWh in 2013, when compared to the conditions in 1975 before implementation of energy
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