Maine Won’t Wait is Maine’s four-year climate plan packed with actionable strategies and goals to emit less carbon, produce energy from renewable sources, and protect our natural resources, communities, and people from the effects of climate change. This climate action plan identified that heating, cooling, and lighting of buildings are responsible for almost one-third of Maine’s greenhouse gas emissions. Maine is a national outlier for its overreliance on delivered fuels with 58% of homes relying on fuel oil (i.e., heating oil and kerosene) for home heating compared to 4% nationally, making it the most residential fuel oil dependent state in the country (US EIA). Furthermore, Maine has an aging housing stock of roughly 550,000 homes, with over half of owned and two-thirds of rented dwellings built in 1960 or earlier suffering from energy inefficient weatherization (US ACS). Energy efficiency and beneficial electrification are important and economical tools to reduce energy costs, decrease greenhouse gas emissions and reliance on fossil fuels, manage energy demand, and create clean energy jobs. Efficiency improvements in energy consumption for heating, cooling, weatherization, appliances, and lighting technologies can aid in reducing energy needs, costs, and associated emissions.
During this presentation, Ross Anthony, who serves as the Buildings and Energy Efficiency Analyst for the Maine Governor’s Energy Office, will provide an overview of energy efficiency and beneficial electrification initiatives, policies, programs, and goals. There will be a particular focus on heat pump, weatherization, and heat pump water heater benefits, incentives, and environmental impact.
About the speaker: The Maine Governor’s Energy Office (GEO) is the designated state energy office and serves as the primary advisor to the Governor on energy issues. The GEO seeks to advance energy solutions that are clean, affordable, and dependable for the benefit of all Maine people. Ross Anthony serves as the Buildings and Energy Efficiency Analyst within the GEO. In this capacity, he tracks and advises on buildings and energy efficiency programs, policies, and opportunities needed to meet Maine’s energy and climate requirements, reduce emissions and energy costs, and strengthen Maine’s clean energy economy.