According to the Department of Energy, of the $2,000 an average household spends on energy annually, $200 – $400 is typically wasted.
In its 2009 study, “Unlocking energy efficiency in the US economy,” McKinsey & Company offers a detailed analysis of the energy efficiency potential in non-transportation uses of energy, a thorough assessment of the barriers, and an outline of the practical solutions available to unlock the potential.
The research shows the US economy has the potential to reduce annual non-transportation energy consumption by roughly 23% by 2020, eliminating more than $1.2 trillion in waste—a figure well beyond the $520 billion upfront investment that would be required. The reduction in energy use would also result in the abatement of 1.1 gigatons of greenhouse-gas emissions annually—the equivalent of taking the entire US fleet of passenger vehicles and light trucks off the roads. Read more.