Midwest Building Decarbonization Coalition
What is decarbonization - and why should I care about it?
If you’re asking this question, you’re not alone! Decarbonizing our buildings is one of the biggest climate actions you may not have heard of. In it’s simplest form: building decarbonization entails converting appliances like furnaces, water heaters, and stoves from burning fossil fuels to running off of clean, carbon-free electricity.
Transitioning Midwestern buildings to carbon-free, renewable electricity has the potential to reduce utility costs, increase housing affordability, improve residents’ health and safety, and help state and local governments achieve climate goals. The Midwest Building Decarbonization Coalition (Midwest BDC) supports equitable deep decarbonization strategies to address the regional challenges of cold climates and purple state politics.
Reduce
Limiting the amount of energy needed to keep our homes safe and comfortable through methods such as weatherization and energy efficiency.
Replace
Converting appliances like stoves, water heaters, and furnaces from fossil-fuel-burning appliances to electric appliances.
Renewables
Supply energy from clean, renewable energy sources - such as solar, wind, or geothermal.
We grew up hearing “reduce, reuse, recycle.” When it comes to decarbonizing our buildings - we’re introducing the new “three r’s:”
Why the Midwestern Building Decarbonization Coalition?
We’re focused on buildings in the Midwest because decarbonizing this sector has one of the biggest potential impacts on our climate and our communities' physical and financial health.
Emissions from the Midwestern region would rank fifth on the list of top global emitters. In the Midwest, 72% of energy consumption is used for space and water heating - with 79% of residential buildings using combustion (gas, wood, or propane) for space and water heating.
Bottom line: The Midwestern region is a major source of emissions, and the majority of these emissions come from how we heat our homes and buildings.