The good news: Legislators broke important new ground when they focused on renewable energy in the last legislative session. The bad news: They left much undone for an important part of the state’s energy picture: energy efficiency.
Perhaps because conservation is an off-putting word, people in the industry today use the phrase “energy efficiency” when they speak of using less energy and using it wisely. They point out that every kilowatt of energy that isn’t used represents coal that doesn’t have to be dug, oil and gas wells that don’t have to be drilled, power plants that don’t have to be built, and pollution that isn’t poured into the atmosphere.
Fortunately for Colorado, some steps to encourage energy efficiency are underway at both the state and local levels. For example, Gov. Bill Ritter has signed an executive order pledging 20 percent in energy savings by 2020 and has appointed a number of strong energy leaders to the Public Utilities Commission, the newly named Governor’s Energy Office, the health department, and his new climate coordination program. These leaders are expected to support energy efficiency as well as the development and use of power from the sun, wind and other renewable sources.
In addition, the legislature has dedicated $7 million of gambling revenues to a Clean Energy Fund that should support both renewable energy and energy efficiency. A governor’s executive order has set “green” standards for state buildings, and important new regulations now require gas utilities to invest in energy efficiency and require local jurisdictions to upgrade their energy codes.
At the local government level, Boulder, Aurora, Denver, Golden and other cities have established energy-efficiency standards and programs, and both the Metro Mayors Caucus and the Colorado Municipal League have established energy committees to support energy efficiency efforts as well as renewables among their members.
Yet despite these positive steps, important gaps remain. Some 20 energy bills were passed in the last legislative session; most focused on renewable energy rather than first examining energy efficiency solutions, and many posed heavy, top-down, regulatory solutions. Only two significant bills focused on energy efficiency, and both of those bills were regulatory in nature.
While many of the bills will no doubt have a positive impact for Colorado in the long run, it is worrisome that the legislature acted with little policy analysis or strategic assessment of the market. The Governor’s Energy Office had no time to prepare a comprehensive energy strategy for the state before bills were passed. No one paused to ask the “big picture” questions, such as, “What is the role of state government in energy? What is the role of local governments? Of the utilities? Of the market?”
During the current lull between legislative sessions, discussions about Colorado’s energy future will no doubt occur in interim legislative committees, at the PUC, in city halls, in the boardrooms of Colorado utilities, and in the Governor’s Energy Office. If policymakers at all levels are wise, they will debate these key questions. Thoughtful assessment and analysis would demonstrate the huge economic benefits that Colorado can gain from focusing on energy efficiency.
In particular, priority should be given to educating consumers about how to reduce their energy use – and, therefore, their energy bills. For example, encouraging energy audits would tell home and businesses owners what they can do to save on energy. Incentives would encourage the purchase of energy-efficient appliances. If broadly implemented, the home energy rating system (along the lines of the yellow-tag energy ratings now found on all new appliances) would help thousands of would-be home buyers make energy-wise home purchases.
State and local leaders, having encouraged the development and use of renewable energy from solar, wind and biomass, should now turn their attention to energy efficiency. The benefits are reduced costs for both utilities and consumers, the preservation of precious resources, and minimizing damage to the environment. Energy that doesn’t have to be produced is the most cost-effective and cleanest energy of all.
Former Littleton mayor Susan Thornton (smthornton@aol.com) is the volunteer chairwoman of the nonprofit Colorado Energy Science Center, which focuses on educating consumers about wise energy use (www.energyscience.com).
