GAINING ECONOMIC EDGE

Recent economic analysis by leading U.S. academic institutions finds that comprehensive, forward-looking federal climate and energy policy could create up to 20,000 jobs in Tennessee, increase household incomes by $408 and grow the state economy by $0.9 billion.

Aggressive policy implementation results in greater economic and job growth in Tennessee than moderate or no implementation of climate/energy policy. States that currently rely most heavily on carbon-based sources of energy nevertheless stand to benefit most from new policies because of untapped energy efficiency potential. Several U.S. government agencies have gotten similar results with their projections.

Energy inefficiency wastes money, while strong standards that increase energy efficiency is a powerful economic driver, putting money back in Tennessee consumer pockets, which we spend on goods and services, generating more jobs and economic growth.

Strong energy efficiency standards are projected to save every Tennessee household $280 per year, create as many as 12,500 jobs in Tennessee, save consumers 739 million in energy costs, and avoid the need to build 16 new power plants. Tennessee’s commercial, residential and industrial sectors could cut energy use by 46 Trillion BTU by 2020 - or about the amount consumed by 794,000 Tennessee households in 2006. Energy efficiency investments generally cost less than half as much as comparable fossil fuel generation capacity and, on a per kilowatt hour basis, are less than half average retail electricity rates, according to Duke University.

Tennessee business leaders know that reducing waste increases the bottom-line and improves competitiveness. Across the U.S., major corporations are saving energy and reducing global warming pollution to save money.

The U.S. as a whole uses roughly twice as much energy to produce a dollar of goods as our European and Japanese trading partners. That puts us at a serious competitive disadvantage. Some major U.S. corporations have already taken action to correct this disadvantage:
Weyerhaeuser plans to reduce its greenhouse gases 40% below 2000 levels by 2020 for purely economic reasons: reduced costs and reliance on oil through increased use of biomass.

BP has reduced emissions by 10% and saved $650 million.

DuPont has reduced emissions by 69% and saved $2 billion.

IBM has reduced emissions by 65% and saved $791 million.

Alcoa has reduced emissions by 25% and saved $100 million.

3M has reduced emissions by 50% and saved $200 million.