Construction and use of buildings account for a major share of global warming emissions. Depending on how one calculates, allocating roughly 40 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to this built infrastructure is roughly correct. Heating … cooling … lighting … building materials … etc, it all adds up (and up … and up). A good share of the building GHGs relates back to energy usage — where, after all, does the lion’s share of coal-generated electricity end up other than illuminating our entertainment systems and over-cooling during summer heat?
A simply reality: tremendous room exists for efficiency measures at not just cost effective but, in fact, profitable financial rates of return. That energy efficiency has remained an under-exploited example of a win-win-win space means that it remains a place for fast and effective action.
Today, President Obama focused on this win-win-win opportunity.