67.3% of All Energy Generated in the U.S. is Wasted
We don't need more energy, just better energy services
No one wants more energy from coal, oil or gas. Nor do we want more energy.
What we really want is the services energy provides: light, heat, cooling, transportation, and so on.
Need-to-Know: No one needs more energy, just better energy services.
Did you know that more than 60% of all energy produced is wasted?
Yes, more than 60% of the energy from fossil fuels is lost, and cannot be used to provide the energy services we want.
Need-to-Know: 67.3% of the energy generated in the U.S. is wasted
Here’s the famous energy-flow diagram for the U.S. by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
On the left are sources of energy generation, the middle is how the energy is used and the far left is the net: Rejected (waste) Energy 67.3 quads vs 33.0 in actual Energy Services. (A quad is a way to measure massive amounts of energy. It’s equivalent to the energy of 183 million barrels of oil or 38.5 million tons of coal.)
Incredible.
This means a 100% renewable energy system for the U.S. doesn’t need to generate the equivalent of 100 quads of energy a year but something closer to 40 quads.
Need-to-Know: Put $100 worth of gasoline in your car and you only get $20-$25 worth of transportation
Here’s an illustration:
Your car burns gasoline and that produces large amounts of waste heat, while fuel, oil, and water need to be pumped through the car and so on. Only 15% to 25% of the energy from combustion ends up being used to move the vehicle.
Spend $100 on gas and you only get $20 worth of energy service or final energy in the form of transportation. (And this is after 100+ years of improving combustion engine technology.)
An electric vehicle (EV) simply transfers the electricity in the battery to the electric motor and 90% of the energy is used to move the vehicle. This makes an EV 4 to 5 times more energy efficient.
Despite the enormous environmental and human health costs and their gross inefficiency, fossil fuels still account for more than 80% of global energy production.
Need-to-Know: It’s shocking we’re still addicted to fossil fuels.
One major obstacle to 100% clean energy services for all of us is political and economic systems based on consumption, and really, overconsumption. Our “more-more-more” way of tackling most problems is wasteful and ineffective.
The other obstacle is that the staggering wealth of the fossil fuel industry buys political influence and enormous amounts of advertising and propaganda. The automotive industry has been the largest buyer of advertising for decades and spent $12 billion last year in the U.S. alone.
For more on this see previous NtK issues:
How Fossil Fuel Lobbying Created the Climate Emergency
UN says Stop Fossil Fuels Before They Destroy Our Planet
What can you and I do?
We can become role models of low-carbon lifestyles, invest in and support low-carbon business, and lobby for stringent climate policies.
Remember the vast majority of people want strong climate policies despite what the few attention-seeking naysayers shout. (See: Later Is Too Late: Climate change is putting our children’s futures at risk.)
Need-to-Know: We can be role models of decent, low-carbon living.
Until next week, be well.
Stephen
PS. Let’s not forget the enormous health benefits of phasing out fossil fuels.