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ENERGY
TAX DOLLARS
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Our government is the single largest user of energy in the U.S., spending more than $12 billion annually.
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65% of DOE budget has been on nuclear energy since 1957, only 10% of electricity is supplied by nuclear power plants.
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Within this decade, more than 1/2 of the nuclear power plants in this country will reach expiration age and be decommissioned. Estimated cost for each plant is $2 billion.
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Costs of storing, transporting and disposing of nuclear waste ($?) YOUR tax dollars.
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5 national laboratories did 3 years of research work that shows the government could reduce its energy consumption one fifth at no additional cost to taxpayers. Investment in efficiency paid for by savings.
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THE FREE MARKET
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The First National Bank Plaza spent $400,000 for energy efficient lighting; annual savings = $500.000.
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Westin Hotel in San Francisco spent $75,000 on energy efficient lighting; annual savings = $85,000.
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Verizon spent $25 million on an energy efficiency retrofit and saved $100 million over the last three years.
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The Ford Motor Plant in Chicago Heights spent $840,000 for a solar wall which offsets heating costs; first year savings were $350,000; following year (with more insulation) savings = $375,000
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The wind turbines currently operating in California produce enough electricity to power more than the number of homes in San Francisco
and are not federally subsidized.
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Bigelow, a Chicago-based home builder, has built more than 1,000 homes in the Chicago area with no furnaces; annual heating bills are $200.
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