The entire world, especially the United States, is in the midst of an energy revolution. Since the oil embargo of 1973, individuals, corporations, and other organizations have found ways to economically reduce energy use. In this book, Jim Sweeney examines the energy policies and practices of the past forty years and their impact on three crucial systems: the economy, the environment, and national security. He shows how energy-efficiency contributions to the country's overall energy situation have been more powerful than all the increases in the domestic production of oil, gas, coal, geothermal energy, nuclear power, solar power, wind power, and biofuels. The author details the impact of new and improved energy-efficient technologies, the environmental and national security benefits of energy efficiency, ways to amplify energy efficiency, and more. Energy Efficiency: Building a Clean, Secure Economy reveals how the careful nurturing of private- and public-sector energy efficiency-along with public awareness, appropriate pricing, appropriate policies--and increased research and development, the trends of decreasing energy intensity and increasing energy efficiency can be beneficially accelerated.

Examines the energy policies and practices of the past forty years and their impact on three crucial systems: the economy, the environment, and national security. Jim Sweeney shows how energy-efficiency contributions to US's overall energy situation have been more powerful than all the increases in the domestic production of oil, gas, coal, geothermal energy, nuclear power, solar power, wind power, and biofuels.

List of Figures and Tables Foreword by George P. Shultz Acknowledgments Introduction Chapter 1. The Policy Context for Energy Efficiency Energy Efficiency as an Energy Policy Strategy The Environment Security The Economy Some Terminology: Energy Efficiency, Energy Conservation, Energy Intensity, Energy Productivity Barriers to Energy Efficiency Chapter 2. Energy Efficiency Is All Around Us New or Improved Technologies Lighting Refrigeration Cars and Light Trucks Aircraft Computing Changed Adoption of Energy- Efficient Technologies Building Insulation Other Technologies in Buildings Efficiency in Federal Government Buildings Changed Company Practices Reducing Energy Usage as a Profit/Cost Strategy Data- Driven Industrial Energy Management Airline Capacity Factor Management Behavioral Strategies Commercial Building Retrofits Contracts/Collaborations to Overcome Split Incentive Problems Incentives: Internal Carbon Pricing In Summary Chapter 3. Energy Efficiency and Aggregate Energy Intensity in the United States—1950 through 2014 The Pre-Energy- Crisis Period: 1950 to 1973 The Energy Crisis: 1973–74 Energy- Consumption Growth Expectations during the Early 1970s Energy Use after the 1973–74 Crisis US Domestic Energy Production in the Post- Energy- Crisis Period Domestic Energy Supply and Energy Demand Together Chapter 4. Energy-Efficiency Benefits: Environment and Security Decarbonization of the US Economy US Net Energy Imports Chapter 5. Sectoral Disaggregation of Energy Consumption Industrial, Transportation, Residential, Commercial Sectors Structural Shifts and the Industrial Sector Energy Efficiency and the Rebound Effect Chapter 6. Amplifying Energy Efficiency Information/Labeling/Nudges Changed Energy-Efficiency Regulations Utility Customer- Funded Programs Financial Incentives Energy Research and Development Energy Policy and Advocacy Organizations Chapter 7. Policy Lessons from the Past Forty Years: What Has Led to Increased Energy Efficiency? Going Forward: The President’s Goal Going Forward: Will the President’s Goal Be Met? Going Forward: Will Energy-Efficiency Progress Stop? Appendix A: Conversion Efficiency in Electricity Generation Appendix B: Calculation of Carbon Intensity of Energy Consumption About the Author Shultz-Stephenson Task Force on Energy Policy Index