Did you know that the average Canadian home runs 25 devices that constantly use standby power and that if they were all turned off it would save households between five and 10 per cent on their electricity bills? Canadian Natural Resource Minister Gary Lunn said that improving standby energy savings could save enough energy to power 400,000 homes, which is equal to all the residences on Vancouver Island.
Lunn said that the energy wasted by common appliances like microwaves and televisions, which are consuming energy 24-hour a day represents a large opportunity to save energy. Lunn met with other resource ministers from the US and Mexico to work on aligning energy efficient standards coming into effect this year.
I don't think it will surprise anyone to learn that US Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman was not entirely interested in clean energy issues. Bodman invoked the US government's standard environment versus the economy argument to avoid making any firm energy reduction commitments, while he positioned the US to receive more oil from Alberta's tarsands.
On the balance between economic growth and global warming Bodman said, "If you go to far you will destroy economic growth and if you don't go far enough you won't deal with the underlying issue of global warming". While I agree that finding a balance between the environment and the economy is important, (no one wants to live in a recession) it often seems that the balance is consistently weighted towards economic considerations. To me prioritizing our economies seems short sighted considering that they will inevitably fail if we continue to destroy the planet.
(All cited quotes & figures are from The Vancouver Sun)
