What You Need to Know About Electrification

It's important to us that we keep our customers well-informed. With clean energy catching the media's attention, you've probably heard about the recent push for electrification. We recognize the importance of a shift to sustainability and are intent on a lower carbon future, and it's essential to understand the situation entirely.

Is electricity the answer for a net zero future? Not right now.

What is Electrification?

So what is electrification anyway? Electrification is the use of electricity to supply power and you're probably very familiar with it already, but you may not be as aware of how it affects you and your community. Many states are pushing for carbon reduction and clean energy plans, but these are pushing for an all electric future which may affect your building. Converting your existing system to an electric one is expensive, and may actually be less efficient in colder temperatures with extreme cases putting so much strain on the electrical grid you may be out of heat entirely with blackouts.

Risks for You

There are a lot of issues with the rush to electrification. We can all acknowledge the urgency climate change deserves, but the solution deserves to be well thought out.

The current electric power grid cannot sustain the needed increase in electrification of heating and transportation; there simply isn't enough clean electricity as is, and there definitely won't be enough with an increased demand. With more homes converting to electricity, power shortages and blackouts become major concerns, especially for matters of public health and safety.

Reality: Electricity and the Environment

Clean energy is great, but we aren't quite there yet when it comes to electrical energy. Electric energy sourced from renewable materials such as solar and wind power can indeed be an excellent alternative to fossil fuels, but that doesn't mean all electricity is clean. In fact, 80% of the power currently used to generate electricity comes from coal and natural gas, which are fossil fuels, not renewable sources. Fossil fuels remain a cheaper alternative to producing energy; therefore, they continue to be used in place of cleaner options. Electric power plants are fossil fuels' #1 customer in the United States, using 90% of coal available, producing 24 billion tons of carbon emissions each year -- equal to 4.7 million cars!