At one time the railroad helped drive economic progress in America, and then it was the interstate highway system.
Now, thanks to the effects of climate change and the extreme heat and weather events the United States is experiencing, a different type of infrastructure is fueling America’s economic future.
“Rather than transportation, the technology that will draw industry to communities today is renewable-energy infrastructure,” says Frank Dalene, author of Decarbonize the World: Solving the Climate Crisis While Increasing Profits in Your Business (www.frankdalene.com).
And the transition is already well underway for the nation’s electricity-production infrastructure, says Dalene, who is president and CEO of Telemark Inc., a construction services business that has become a leader in embracing the latest in energy efficiencies.
Wind energy is one example. Over the last several years, maturing technology, increased competition and other factors have driven down cost and broadened the deployment of offshore wind energy across the globe, according to the 2021 edition of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Offshore Wind Market report.
The Biden administration has set a goal of 30 gigawatts of national offshore wind energy by 2030, the report says. One gigawatt is equal to 1 billion watts, so that goal equals 30 billion watts of offshore wind alone, Dalene says.
Wind energy operations, along with other renewable energy efforts such as solar fields and self-sufficient buildings, are job creators themselves, but they also provide a jobs domino effect, he says.
“When a community – a town, a region, a state – invests in renewable infrastructure, it will draw manufacturers and companies to that area,” Dalene says. “When manufacturers and companies move into an area, they bring more jobs with them.”
Meeting Consumer Demand
People often worry that government mandates will be the driving force behind this change, but Dalene says the free market is already playing a role because consumers care about green products and energy efficiency. When consumers want something, businesses usually try to provide it, he says.
He has seen this play out in the construction industry.
“In this industry, all sorts of energy-efficiency programs are being implemented and becoming part of the building code,” Dalene says. “While some are now required by the government, it all started with the U.S. Green Building Council, a great illustration of a system growing up from the grassroots.”
Dalene says a focus on carbon-neutral businesses is needed because of the devastation climate change can cause – and the strain it puts on existing infrastructure, such as storm drains, flood walls and other systems.
“Hurricanes, tornadoes, and typhoons are all growing bigger, more powerful, and more frequent – as are floods, droughts, and wildfires,” he says. “The destruction these natural disasters rain down upon the communities they hit is devastating.”
Gauging A Company’s Carbon Footprint
Dalene is trying to do his part, both through energy-efficient construction and through a system he developed that gives businesses a snapshot of the carbon emissions generated by their products, processes or services.
The system, called ICEMAN (International Carbon Equivalent Mechanism Attributed to Neutrality), assigns an index number based on a product’s greenhouse emissions. Businesses could use it for free. Dalene would like to see the system implemented nationally so consumers would be aware of what a company’s carbon emissions level is.
If consumers are able to review a company’s carbon footprint, low-carbon manufacturers will gain a competitive edge and others will then try to keep up, he says.
“Change occurs at the grassroots level,” Dalene says. “When we take personal responsibility for our carbon emissions, it’s infectious, and it can become viral in its own right. Consumers can change the world, influencing corporate decisions and behavior and thus making an impact on the global economic structure.”
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Climate change is only getting worse and Cambridge scientists say there is a risk of going beyond irreversible tipping points.
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