Investments in energy efficiency since 1980 have prevented a 60% increase in energy consumption and carbon emissions and are responsible for half of the carbon dioxide emissions reductions in the US power sector since 2005. This is one of the findings of the Energy Efficiency Impact Report, by the Alliance to Save Energy, the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, and the Business Council for Sustainable Energy. The report quantifies the scale of U.S. efficiency investments made over decades and their many impacts, including 2.3 million energy efficiency jobs; $540 million in public health benefits among others.
The report uses 54 indicators across sectors including utility, building, transportation and industry. It highlights the six most impactful policies, which have saved an estimated 25 quadrillion BTUs of energy in 2017, equal to 23% of total U.S. energy use. Policies include: fuel economy standards, appliance and equipment energy efficiency standards, ENERGY STAR, utility sector efficiency programs, federal research and development, and building energy codes. The full report will be published at: energyefficiencyimpact