"The best megawatt is the one we never have to use."

Energy conservation and efficiency are the most effective solutions, because using less is always cleaner, cheaper, and greener than any new energy source, including renewable. The best megawatt is the one we never have to use. There are countless ways to reduce our energy use through better personal choices and through better planning and governance.

A personal choice that C.L. "Corey" Koral made was to build a solar-powered house. No electric lines whatsoever connect to the new home that he recently completed. "I wanted this to be an example of how we can live without the power lines," he says, "by being self-sufficient."

Better community planning, more mass transit, more efficient appliances, changing to efficient lighting and green building are all ways communities can participate in solutions. But industry, especially the utilities that profit from energy consumption, need regulations, mandates, and incentives for conservation and efficiency. The differences are real: each Californian, for example uses roughly half the electricity used by a Virginian. In the Mid-Atlantic region, the American Council For an Energy Efficient Economy estimates that 30% of our future projected peak power electricity demand could be met through cost effective efficiency and conservation measures.