Conclusion: A Clear Solution to a Complex Problem

• All energy use affects the environment.
• For any given resource, technology choices and management practices alter environmental consequences.
• Renewable energy technologies are, in the vast majority of cases, preferable to conventional technologies.
• Most conventional energy technologies are ultimately unsustainable.

Furthermore, the costs of large-scale clean energy development might prove surprisingly modest, and there may in fact be financial benefits:

• Analysis by REPP suggests that deploying 3,000 MW of wind in Texas would add about 75¢ to the average family's monthly electric bill. A national wind program that installed 10,000 MW over 10 years would generate $7 billion in direct economic activity. ¹⁵²

• Research undertaken by the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy suggests that a set of 10 policy measures targeting both energy efficiency and cleaner generation could lower U. S. carbon emissions in 2020 to 45% of business-as-usual levels. ¹⁵³ Measures addressing power generation account for 22% of that total. Meanwhile, SO2 would fall to 23% of business-as-usual levels, NOX to 72%, and particulates to 71%. Consumers would save $500 billion through 2020 through increased efficiency.

• A collaborative study by five organizations suggests that by 2010, an "innovation path" could cut electric sector NOX emissions by 48%, SO2 emissions by 77%, direct particulates emissions by 38%, and CO2 emissions by 27% below 1990 levels. ¹⁵⁴ Through higher efficiency, the innovation path would bring net savings of $530 per American household, and cumulative savings of more than $1 trillion by 2010.

Achieving these results will require new combinations of public policy and market growth to support clean energy. The role of environmental information amidst that mix will change. As in the past, the evidence of damage surveyed in this report will provide data for legislative and regulatory proceedings intended to devise appropriate public policy. But it also must be used to condition the consumer market for environmentally sound power.

In fact, sound, voter-supported environmental policy and vibrant, consumer-supported clean energy markets require the same precondition: a committed public constituency. The primary barrier to the growth of such a constituency is a lack of public awareness. Most people do not know much about the extent and causes of environmental degradation, its effect on their lives, or the options we have for reducing it.

The opportunities for green marketing opened by restructuring of the electric sector may provide our best hope to enlighten the public. The amount of renewable energy capacity installed in response to green power markets is so far modest, although the total may grow in years to come. Potentially more important, we look to the substantial ability of the private sector to stimulate demand. Simply put, if the advertising industry can sell tail fins on Cadillacs, it should be able to sell Americans clean power for the sake of their children and grandchildren. We believe that the a healthy green power market will benefit from and in turn reinforce the campaign for sound environmental policy.

As noted at the start of this survey, an environmentally sound future will require us to live green, vote green, and buy green. Relying exclusively on voluntary markets would indeed be a risky strategy, and they may never pan out in any case. But let's be honest about the nature of our dilemma: as the foregoing litany indicates, the regulatory status quo has failed to protect us adequately. The environmental imperative for renewable energy remains with us; we require new tools to address it. ¹⁵⁵

The Environmental Imperative for
Renewable Energy: An Update

Abstract
Message from REPP Staff

1. Does the Environment Still Matter?
2. Air Pollution
3. Climate Change
4. Land, Water, and Wildlife Impacts
5. Radiation
6. Lifecycle Analysis
7. Conclusion: A Clear Solution to a Complex Problem

copyright © 2000 by Renewable Energy Policy Project