THE ENERGY LANDSCAPE
Residential buildings, commercial buildings, and
the transportation of people and freight use the majority of the
energy consumed by western counties each year. In the USA, the industrial
sector uses 38 percent of total energy, closely followed by the
transportation sector at 28 percent, the residential sector at 19
percent, and the commercial sector at 16 percent. On a community
level, transportation can account for 40 to 50 percent of total
energy use, and residential buildings use another 20 to 30 percent
(Schwab).
In developed nations, the way of life today in
developed countries is completely dependent on abundant supplies
of energy. Energy is needed to heat, cool, and light homes, fuel
cars, and power offices. Energy is also critical for manufacturing
the products used every day, including the cement, concrete and
bricks that shape our communities.
While the U.S. represents only five percent of
the world’s population, it consumes 25 percent of its energy and
generates about 25 percent of its total greenhouse gas emissions.
U.S. citizens, for example, use more energy per capita for transportation
than do citizens of any other industrialized nation--which in part,
reflects the greater distances traveled by Americans compared with
citizens of other nations. Similar figures apply to most developed
countries, and leads to an interesting situation where poorer nations
are more likely to be affected negatively by global warming as the
richer nations are the largest contributors to the problem.
One alarming problem with the close connection
between energy and land use is the relative inflexibility of the
built environment in relation to energy shifts. Energy availability
and pricing are volatile and dependent on changing political and
economic factors. While energy shifts can be quick and capricious,
land development patterns can be difficult and expensive to alter.
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