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Sierra Club's Statement on Tools to Increase Energy Efficiency The Sierra Club places the highest priority on energy efficiency. Efficiency is the cheapest and most effective way to decrease the adverse environmental and national security effects of energy use. Increasing our energy efficiency can help us reduce air and global warming pollution from existing fossil power plants, avoid the need for additional polluting power plants, and save consumers money on their energy bills. Efficiency is the only resource available in large enough quantity at a sufficiently low price that it can undercut old, dirty coal plants and allow a net reduction of CO2 during this decade, and it is the only carbon reduction strategy for the transportation sector that is feasible with existing technology. A strong program will eliminate only a few percent of net consumption per year at best, so it is neither radical nor impractical. Efficiency has a proven track record. The U.S. economy was 42% more efficient in 2000 than in 1970 as measured by energy per dollar of economic activity. Energy efficiency has added more total energy capability to the U.S. than all fossil, nuclear and renewable energy resources combined over the same period. Ongoing efficiency gains cut energy consumption from what would otherwise be 4% per year to an actual 1.5 to 2% annually. Sierra Club supports:
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