Stanford University Professor Mark Z. Jacobson explains how the areas of Los Angeles that have recently been affected by fire have the opportunity to reduce energy bills and reconstruction costs by only rebuilding fully electric houses. “There is no reason to have both electricity and fossil gas in a building at the same time. There is nothing that does gas that does not do any electricity, “he says.
On January 18, 2025 I was lucky thanks to a non-profit Light and a pensioner fire brigade captainRichard Birt, to deliver portable SOLAR-BATTERY SYSTEMSTo firefighters near the front line of the Malibu fire. The firefighters were very grateful, because their only source of electricity was their fire truck and pulled too much electricity from the truck for charging chainsaw batteries and communication equipment could prevent the truck from functioning. Moreover, the truck cannot be brought from the road to the fire brigade, while the sunbatch system is possible.
It was mile devastating mile after mile past the picturesque Pacific Coast Highway, and saw one structure that has been surrounded by the other after the other. Families displaced. Memories lost. History erased. From the ash, however, there is a chance to do what needs to be done everywhere in America and the world. That chance is to build all new houses and companies with only electricity and not fossil gas, in contrast to mayor of Los Angeles Karen Bass ’13 January Executive order Which means that residents can rebuild houses “as they were” with fossil gas.
Avoiding gas eliminates the chance that a torn gas pipe will explode, as in San BrunoCalifornia, in 2010, to kill 8, 58 to be injured and to destroy 38 houses. Avoiding underground gas also facilitates the installation of underground electric lines. Underground electric lines are needed to eliminate the chance that they will cause sparks, as probably causes The Eaton fire. Not burning gas also eliminates benzene (a carcinogen) and other health -promoting air pollutants from the houses of people and death by carbon monoxide poisoning as a result of Defective devices Run on gas. It Reduces the need For the Aliso Canyon Gas Storage Facility, which blew open for 112 days from 2015-2016, spuw 97,000 tons From methane plus other gases in the air. Finally, reducing gas reduces the need for the 50,000 New oil and gas wells that were drilled every year in Midden -Noord -America.
Making new buildings, all electricity eliminates gas from them, reducing the in advance and long -term costs. There is no reason to have both electricity and fossil gas in a building at the same time. There is nothing that does gas that does not do any electricity better. Contractors want people to take both electricity and gas because contractors know that they are paid more for the extra work and the equipment needed with gas. Wasted costs as a result of installing gas include a gas connection costsStreuven for gas pipes, the pipes themselves, gas equipment, a gas meter and a carbon monoxy monitor. Building owners with electricity only need gas. They only need electricity and electrical appliances. But the most important electrical appliances use much less energy than equivalent gas equipment. For example, an electric heat pump for the use of air and water heating, air conditioning and clothing drying 67% to 80% less Energy then a gas heating for the same purposes. Used an electric induction cooking top 62% less Energy then a gas hob.
Building owners can reduce costs more by installing solar and batteries on the roof and/or taking energy efficiency measures in their buildings. At least there are 11 reasons Why Zonne -Zon on the roof lowers the costs for everyone. Among them, it reduces the need for expensive electricity of the Californian grid, reduces the risk of natural fire by reducing the need for electrical lines, reduces land needs and reduces pollution by electricity from the grid. Solar on the roof also offers electricity during a grid blackout. It cools buildings in the summer by converting sunlight into electricity. It eliminates the need for expensive roofing material and serves as an extra source of grid electricity. Batteries shift excess solar -Zonne -electricity to the night and avoid payment by homeowners of high evening rates. Efficiency measures (sealing doors and windows, using LED lights and energy-efficient devices) reduce the need for electricity.
Taking these measures can eliminate the fossil gas bill, electricity bill and gasoline batin receipt of a buildings. A solar and battery system with a subsidy pays itself after five years due to both cost savings and energy cost savings. Without a subsidy, the payback time is approximately nine years, while Solar guarantees 25 years.
Los Angeles has the possibility to do the same by only reducing fully electric houses in advance by eliminating the wastage installation of fossil gas; Reduce customer accounts for fossil gas and electricity in new houses and vehicle fuel; Reduce the fire risk of the transmission line sparks and cracks of the gas pipeline; and reduce health, environmental and climate damage due to fossil gas.
Mark Z. Jacobson is professor of civil and environmental technology at Stanford University and the author of ‘No miracles: How today’s technology can save our climate and clean our air. “
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