Support a Smarter Energy Grid
Chances are, your cell phone has more computing power than NASA had the day John Glenn orbited the earth. The system that delivers electricity to your house, on the other hand, is still based on technology that predates the Wright brothers. America's power grid needs a serious upgrade:
* it depends mostly on coal, the dirtiest source of energy;
* two-thirds of the energy in the fuel burned to produce electricity is lost in the process of generation and delivery;
* the whole power grid is so shaky that a single downed power line can black out tens of millions of homes.
President Barack Obama and Energy Secretary Steven Chu have announced plans to help build a smarter, more efficient energy grid that will save Americans money and reduce our global warming footprint.
This is a great first step. But we need to make sure our government follows through and seizes this historic opportunity to build a smarter energy system and unleash our clean energy future.
Thank you for your leadership in jump starting a more modern and efficient energy grid. This is a first good step toward providing customers with information to make smarter energy choices and accelerating the innovation and deployment of renewables, energy efficiency, and demand response.
The promise of a smart grid won't be realized without a clear focus on achieving the greatest environmental benefits from smart grid technologies. This requires a systematic focus that holds energy providers and other stakeholders accountable for measurable results.
Thanks to pioneering projects like the Pecan Street Project in Austin, Texas -- one of America's first comprehensive smart grid deployments -- there is a useful model on how to do this right.
[Your comments]
As important as the investment in a smart grid is, it does not replace the urgent need for a national cap and trade bill for global warming pollution. A smart grid will help improve energy efficiency and help make a transition to clean, renewable energy possible. But, we need continued Presidential leadership to pass a comprehensive climate and energy bill in order to truly unleash our clean energy future.
