“The United States doesn’t yet face the shortage of power that has left more than 600 million people in India without electricity… but the U.S. power grid is aging and stretched to capacity.”  This quote was taken from an article written in the Washington Post after the massive power outages in India last week.  According to the American Society of Civil Engineers, an additional investment of $107 billion is needed to keep our electrical infrastructure operating.  A system that was primarily built 50 to 60 years ago.  Basically, “We’re giving her all she’s got Captain!”

I am continually amazed at how much money and effort is invested in finding new forms energy, energy production, and even “smart grids”.  I am even MORE amazed at how little attention is paid to using less of what we already have.  Energy conservation just isn’t as sexy.  Don’t get me wrong, sustainable, cleaner forms of energy that can be delivered more efficiently would be great.  BUT, imagine how much less energy we would have to produce if every house and every business in the U.S. used just 10% less energy than it does now.  A number which could be easily achieved.

Don’t think that something like what happened in India could happen here? Think again.  Last summer record temperatures in Texas caused rolling brown outs that ended up crashing the internet.  Because of the loss of power at a major data center in Dallas, thousands of websites were down for more than a day (including that of yours truly).  The same types of issues have occurred in New York, Arizona, and California several times.

Until more focus is placed on energy efficiency instead of production, we will always be leaving ourselves open to more major failures like those that have already occurred across this country.  Investing in energy efficiency will not only save us money in the long run, but it will also help to create jobs by creating greater demand in the industry.  Sounds like a win/win situation to me.

What do you think about this?  Please leave comments and questions below or email me @ JonL@theNRGguy.com or contact me through Facebook.  As always….Don’t throw money at your problems, throw knowledge, it’s a lot cheaper.