Energy Management & What YOU Can Do to Help the Environment
Energy management is a term that refers to the mindful consumption of energy for day-to-day life. Mindful consumption is important in most areas of life: it’s crucial to always consider how your actions might affect the world around you, and even yourself.
Energy in NYC is a tricky thing. For example, did you know that while in most of the country, the average rate of electricity is 18 cents per kWh, while in New York City, the average rate is 22 cents per kWh? Access to clean, reliable, and affordable energy is a human necessity in today’s world. Unfortunately, many families are forced to pay large amounts for access to energy, amounts not everyone can afford.
Yet that’s simply the tail end of a long story about energy. Let’s go back to the beginning: its origin. Where do we get energy from anyway?
A quick search tells us New York gets about a third of its energy from Dual Fuel – AKA, gas and oil. Another third is nuclear power, another fifth is hydro power, and the rest is split evenly between a few other sources. This means that while not all of our power, a large portion of our energy comes from non-renewable sources. These sources are at risk of running out someday, and when they do, will have major detrimental effects on our entire electric system.
Now, let’s go back to energy management. Of course, almost all of us need energy to function during the day. It’s simply impossible to completely eradicate our energy consumption, but we CAN minimize it as much as possible. Optimizing our energy consumption can help put off using up all our fossil fuels, and give us more time to switch to more renewable options.
Here are some actions YOU can take to help optimize energy consumption:
The next time your lightbulb runs out, switch to an energy-saving lightbulb rather than your usual brand.
Go over your electricity bill. Identify where it is you consume the most energy and if possible, attempt to cut down.
Turn off lights when you’re not at home or during the day.
Research! Put time into studying energy management and figure out how you best can help support the planet.
- Ellie, Jay, and Oli
Green Team Guides