- Ohio's energy use as projected by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio.
Figure 1: Total Energy Requirements in Ohio by Source, 1960-2027 [i]
Renewable Energy
- In 2007, renewable energy increased to 7% of the total primary energy consumed in the U.S.[ii]
Figure 2: Renewable Energy as Share of Total Primary Energy Consumption,
2007
(Figure 10.1 in AER)[ii]
- In 2006, renewable energy and energy efficiency industries in the U.S. generated 8.5 million new jobs and generated $971.8 billion in revenue. Of these, renewable energy accounted for 452,000 jobs and $39.2 billion while energy efficiency accounted for 8,046,000 jobs and 932.6 million. [iii]
- The U.S. investment in renewable energy has been increasing rapidly, to over $13 billion in 2007.[iii]
- In Ohio, the renewable energy industry supported over 6600 jobs and generated nearly $800M in revenues for 2006. The energy efficiency industry created over $50 billion in revenue and employed nearly 500,000. [iii]
- In 2007, the University Clean Energy Alliance of Ohio (UCEAO) was formed by 15 Ohio committed to working together on clean energy research and development. [iv]
- On May 1, 2008, Ohio adopted and Alternative Energy Portfolio Standard (AEPS) which requires by law that 25% of all electricity sold in the state come from alternative energy resources, with half of that coming from renewable energy sources.
Solar
- An OSU student-led team was selected to compete in the 2009 Solar Decathlon. Twenty teams from around the world were selected and are currently designing and building houses that will move to the National Mall in Washington DC in September/October 2009 to compete in 10 contest areas. http://solardecathlon.osu.edu/
Wind
- In the U.S., wind-generated electricity increased by 45% from 2005 to 2006 and 21% from 2006 to 2007, more than any other renewable source.[v]
- According to the Renewable Energy Policy Project and Policy Matters Ohio, for a given national investment in wind energy, Ohio would benefit with the second highest number of jobs created. This is due to the large 60+ Ohio companies manufacturing wind components.[vi]
Fuel Cells
- Ohio has over 800 companies in the fuel cell supply chain and has invested over $100 million in fuel cell research and development.[vii]
Biofuel
- Ethanol production increased 25% between 2005 and 2006, from 3.9 to 4.9 billion gallons. The Energy Policy Act of 2005 has mandated 5.4 billion gallons of renewable fuel use in gasoline by 2008. The rate of ethanol consumption outpaced the rate of production from 2005 to 2006, supported primarily by imports from Brazil.[viii]
- The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 set a Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) which requires the use of at least 36 billion gallons of biofuel in 2022. [ix]
Energy Efficiency
- LED lighting (Ringle)
Transportation
- Ohio is the second large producer of automobiles and component parts.
Cutting-Edge Research
- In the future, your car may be powered by algae. Algae produces 30 times more energy than soybeans per acre. When algaculture becomes cost effective, it will be able to use sewage waste or saltwater, as well as non-productive land to produce biodiesel and bioethanol.
[i] Ohio Long Term Forecast of Energy Requirements 2008-2027, Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, http://www.puco.ohio.gov/Puco/IndustryTopics/Topic.cfm?id=5494, August 15, 2008.
[ii] Annual Energy Review, Report #:DOE/EIA-0384(2007), http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/aer/contents.html, June 23, 2008.
[iii] Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency: Economic Drivers for the 21st Century, Roger Bezdek for the American Solar Energy Society, 2007.
[iv] University Clean Energy Alliance of Ohio, (www.uceao.org), Green Energy Ohio, http://www.greenenergyohio.org/page.cfm?pageID=1285, accessed 10-4-08.
[v] Energy in Brief: How much renewable energy do we use?, Energy Information Administration, http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/energy_in_brief/renewable_energy.cfm, August 21, 2008.
[vi] Component Manufacturing: Ohio s Future in the Renewable Energy Industry, Renewable Energy Policy Project, G. Sterzinger, M. Svrcek, 2005.
[vii] Ohio Advanced Energy Overview, Ohio Department of Development, http://www.ohiomeansbusiness.com/downloads.php, 2007.
[viii] Renewable Energy Trends, Energy Information Administration, http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/solar.renewables/page/trends/rentrends.html, July 2008.
[ix] Fact Sheet: Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, Office of the Press Secretary, http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2007/12/20071219-1.html, December 19, 2007.