1.0Citizens Utility Boardhttps://www.citizensutilityboard.orgrich600338<blockquote class="wp-embedded-content" data-secret="E3Ca1jDDPE"><a href="https://www.citizensutilityboard.org/blog/2024/11/26/illinois-future-of-gas-electrification-meeting-pt-2-november-18-2024/">Illinois Future of Gas: Electrification Meeting Pt. 2 – November 18, 2024</a></blockquote><iframe sandbox="allow-scripts" security="restricted" src="https://www.citizensutilityboard.org/blog/2024/11/26/illinois-future-of-gas-electrification-meeting-pt-2-november-18-2024/embed/#?secret=E3Ca1jDDPE" width="600" height="338" title="“Illinois Future of Gas: Electrification Meeting Pt. 2 – November 18, 2024” — Citizens Utility Board" data-secret="E3Ca1jDDPE" frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" class="wp-embedded-content"></iframe><script type="text/javascript"> /* <![CDATA[ */ /*! This file is auto-generated */ !function(d,l){"use strict";l.querySelector&&d.addEventListener&&"undefined"!=typeof URL&&(d.wp=d.wp||{},d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage||(d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if((t||t.secret||t.message||t.value)&&!/[^a-zA-Z0-9]/.test(t.secret)){for(var s,r,n,a=l.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret="'+t.secret+'"]'),o=l.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret="'+t.secret+'"]'),c=new RegExp("^https?:$","i"),i=0;i<o.length;i++)o[i].style.display="none";for(i=0;i<a.length;i++)s=a[i],e.source===s.contentWindow&&(s.removeAttribute("style"),"height"===t.message?(1e3<(r=parseInt(t.value,10))?r=1e3:~~r<200&&(r=200),s.height=r):"link"===t.message&&(r=new URL(s.getAttribute("src")),n=new URL(t.value),c.test(n.protocol))&&n.host===r.host&&l.activeElement===s&&(d.top.location.href=t.value))}},d.addEventListener("message",d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage,!1),l.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded",function(){for(var e,t,s=l.querySelectorAll("iframe.wp-embedded-content"),r=0;r<s.length;r++)(t=(e=s[r]).getAttribute("data-secret"))||(t=Math.random().toString(36).substring(2,12),e.src+="#?secret="+t,e.setAttribute("data-secret",t)),e.contentWindow.postMessage({message:"ready",secret:t},"*")},!1)))}(window,document); /* ]]> */ </script> By: Scott Allen, Energy Policy Specialist  On Monday, November 18, the Future of Gas workshop wrapped up its exploration of building electrification as a decarbonization pathway. The previous workshop (November 4) focused on residential and industrial opportunities, while this time the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) discussed commercial appliance switching for space heating and cooling, water heating and cooking. The other two presentations were from ComEd and Ameren. ComEd’s presentation was fairly well structured and addressed questions about its ability to meet winter peaking demand and whether heat pumps can be both adequate and cost effective. Ameren’s presentation was  the opposite of all that. As was the case with industrial decarbonization, I think EPRI’s presentation is worth looking over if for no other reason than seeing some studies on the effectiveness of heat pumps and electric cooking.  I also appreciated EPRI taking time to talk about the scale of commercial building emissions at the Illinois and national  levels. It’s important to keep in mind the amount of gas each sector of the economy uses and for what purposes, lest we get caught up in the arguments from the fossil fuel industry that these sectors are either impossible to electrify, or that these sectors don’t represent much of an impact at all. This graphic shows us how commercial buildings use fossil fuels for heat, and the carbon dioxide emissions resulting from those uses: Not surprisingly, space heating is particularly dirty in the commercial sector, followed by cooking and water heating. In Illinois, according to EPRI’s study of U.S. Energy Information Administration data, 20 percent of methane gas is used in commercial buildings, and these buildings also account for 20 percent of our energy use in the state. Illinois is the eighth largest methane consumer in the nation. The good news is that across each sector of the economy the state can significantly  reduce the amount of gas we need for all categories of end use, and we can begin that reduction now without much hesitation. Further  reductions can continue through the medium term (5-15 years), and in the long term, we can focus on those “hard to decarbonize” end uses. So what is stopping us from embarking on a more significant reduction?  As far as I can tell from these workshops, it’s an absence of effective policy combined with fear-mongering from proponents of gas. That’s not to say that there aren’t legitimate concerns to discuss, but there’s a difference between discussion and action. The goal for gas advocates in this process is to ensure that we never get to the action part, and they work to achieve this goal by discussing barriers and pushing  non-decarbonization actions. Depending on the subject of the workshop and the points of view being presented, the challenges of decarbonization and the level of difficulty assigned to each of them tend to shift from meeting to meeting. When it comes to electrification, I think everybody involved would agree that the electric grid, appliance/equipment capability and affordability are three of the most important challenges to consider. ComEd addressed each of them in its presentation, and had a relatively positive […]https://www.citizensutilityboard.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Illinois-Future-of-Gas-Banner-800x221.png