Written on: May 10, 2021
Just last winter, people across the United States watched and worried as power outages took over Texas following a devastating freeze. A few times every year, we see a storm cut off power in a region, with entire communities left without power for extended periods of time.
Even with events like this happening year to year, we’re still seeing many state governments pushing to “electrify everything.” This approach is seen as a solution that protects the environment, and it’s paired with a push to outlaw all fossil-fuel heating systems—propane-fired, heating oil and natural gas boilers and furnaces—and use electric heat pumps instead.
What many consumers—and lawmakers—don’t realize is that these expensive heat-pump conversions do not work very efficiently in cold weather. In fact, under 32°F, heat pumps become extremely inefficient and need a backup system to keep your home warm! Another fact many people don’t realize is that electricity production generates the second-largest share of greenhouse gas emissions. (Transportation takes the top spot.)
At Hometowne Energy, we believe we need to take aggressive steps to address climate change—and we’ve already gotten started. That’s why we deliver ultra-low-sulfur heating oil and energy-efficient propane. Both our heating oil and propane produce near-zero-emissions: far fewer than electricity does.
The idea of cutting back on carbon emissions through electrification does not take the big picture into account. It is our goal to encourage state and federal agencies to engage with the heating oil and propane industries. We want to show them how we are already helping to achieve everyone’s carbon-emissions-reduction goals right now—including ours!
We can’t rely on breakthroughs that have not yet taken place—on an already unreliable electric grid. If we do, we’ll see more overload. The electric grid is simply not ready for primetime.
Contact us to find out how we can all work together to support the movement toward a carbon-emissions free future.