Page 4 - Green Builder Magazine May-June 2021

EDITOR’S NOTE
The Inside Scoop

It’s Time to Hasten the

Demise of Natural Gas

New research finds rising levels of methane from gas production.

The Texas freeze burned away the myth that gas offers better
resilience than renewable backup systems.

OR DECADES, WE’VE HEARD ABOUT THE BENEFITS of heating our homes and water with natural gas.
We’ve been told that it’s a “clean fuel,” with polite silence about messy extraction processes like fracking,
as well as leaking distribution pipes. We’ve been sold on the superiority of gas cooktops and told how much
“cheaper” it is to heat our homes and water with gas than with electricity.
Perhaps that last assumption is still true in certain jurisdictions, where grid-delivered electricity costs
are high. But the party’s just about over. Solar panels reached grid parity with fossil fuels in most states
last year. Induction cooktops and ranges offer rapid response and fine control. Heat pump technology has
leveled the space heating and water heating playing fields.
Natural gas also has some dirty secrets. For example, new research from the National Oceanic and
F Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) found last year that levels of methane rose to the highest levels seen
on Earth for 3 million years. And that was during the pandemic downturn.
Connecting the dots reveals that methane is a major byproduct of natural gas production. Meanwhile, methane’s
warming impact on the earth’s atmosphere is roughly 80 times that
of the same amount of carbon over a 20-year-period. A new report
from the United Nations puts new emphasis on winding down the
use of natural gas to reduce methane in the atmosphere.
Back in Texas, homeowners learned in February that dependence on
gas and coal offers little security in a real crisis. Instead of offering a
safe backup power source during the deep freeze weather, natural gas
equipment froze, and gas providers exploited the chaos and shortages
to send prices skyrocketing. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas
(ERCOT) noted that the disaster occurred (primarily) due to frozen
mechanical equipment at gas and coal plants, not because wind turbines
froze over.
How big is the challenge of switching from gas to renewable,
electric-based systems at the housing level in the U.S.? Nearly
half of the nation’s homes rely on natural gas for space
heating, according to the U.S. Energy Information
Administration (EIA). With the latest equipment,
Seventy years of waiting. The promise of the electric home however, conversion to full electric is desirable
seemed within reach as early as the 1950s, but only now has and achievable. Why? Because electricity can be
home technology improved enough to make the switch from produced using solar or wind technology — without
fossil fuel seamless and sensible. fossil fuel emissions.
The first crucial step toward getting off gas and
CREDIT: COURTESY OF WESTINGHOUSE ELECTRIC CORPORATION AND THE ASSOCIATION FOR PRESERVATION
TECHNOLOGY INTERNATIONAL
into electric, for homeowners, is not switching out the
furnace. Instead, existing homes need an energy audit. New homes need careful detailing and air
sealing, optimized R-values and efficient, quiet mechanical ventilation. Matt Power
The upside for homeowners? When the next Texas freeze hits, their homes will be several steps Editor-in-Chief
matt.power@greenbuildermedia.com
closer to weathering the storm in comfort. A well-designed battery storage system, an efficient
mini-split, solar panels and an induction cooktop will give a house a fighting chance. GB

2 GREEN BUILDER May/June 2021 www.greenbuildermedia.com