DOE Enforces Reporting Requirements for Appliance Standards
On December 9, DOE announced that manufacturers of certain residential products have until January 8, 2010 to submit accurate certification reports and compliance statements as part of DOE's enhanced enforcement of its appliance standards for energy efficiency.
Under federal law, manufacturers of some products covered by DOE appliance standards are required to certify their models meet the standards. Those that have fallen short of this requirement can rectify the situation in the next 30 days without penalty. The 30-day grace period will help DOE ensure compliance with regulations, sanction those who fail to comply, and treat all those subject to the requirements fairly and equally.
Following this 30-day window, DOE will aggressively enforce reporting requirements, including seeking civil penalties or fines. The grace period doesn't apply to violations of the actual energy efficiency standards, as DOE will continue to take action against any manufacturer whose products don't meet the standards. Both manufacturers and companies that trademark or label products are subject to reporting requirements.
The requirements include a certification report for each basic appliance model covered by the energy standards, along with a signed compliance statement. See the DOE press release and fact sheet (PDF 42 KB), as well as the Web site for DOE's Appliances and Commercial Equipment Standards Program.
EIA: U.S. Energy-Related CO2 Emissions to Grow 8.7% by 2030
In the absence of new policies, U.S. emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) from energy use will increase from 5,814 million metric tons in 2008 to 6,320 million metric tons in 2035, according to DOE's Energy Information Administration (EIA). That represents an average annual growth of 0.3% per year.
Energy-related CO2 emissions dominate overall U.S. GHG emissions, so the overall emissions are expected to follow the same trend. The growth rate is slower than that of the past 20 years, when U.S. GHG gases increased at an average annual rate of 0.7%. But it falls fall short of President Obama's recent pledge to reduce GHG in the range of 17% below 2005 levels by 2020.
The EIA released the main conclusions of the reference case for its "Annual Energy Outlook 2010" on December 14, although the full report won't be available until March 2010. The reference case projects a lower long-term price for oil than the 2009 reference case, but petroleum demand remains essentially constant, as biofuels meet most of the growth in demand for liquid fuels.
However, the report predicts that biofuels will fall short of the 36 billion gallons required by 2022 under the federal Renewable Fuel Standard. The report also expects flex-fuel vehicles and EVs to dominate car and light truck sales by 2035, helping to achieve an average light-duty fuel efficiency of 40 miles per gallon. The EIA expects these and other energy efficiency measures and structural changes in the U.S. economy to keep overall energy growth low, with energy consumption increasing by only 14% over the next 27 years.
Growth in electricity demand is also expected to be relatively low, averaging only 1% per year, with non-hydropower renewable energy and natural gas providing most new capacity additions over the next 27 years. Non-hydropower renewable sources are expected to meet 41% of the growth in total electricity production, causing the percentage of the nation's electricity produced from renewable energy (including hydropower) to increase from 9.1% in 2008 to 17% in 2035, taking market share away from coal power. Meanwhile, U.S. production of natural gas from shale will cause domestic natural gas production to increase, keeping imports of liquefied natural gas at low levels. See the EIA press release and the early release of the "Annual Energy Outlook 2010."
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EREE Network News is a weekly publication of the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE).
