In 2015, renewable energy covered nearly half of all new U.S. house starts, according to a new report from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).
The report, which tracked data from the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Residential Energy Consumption Survey (RECS), found that solar photovoltaic (PV) systems were installed on 42% of new houses in 2015, while wind turbines were installed on 9%. Geothermal systems were installed on 3% of new houses, while biomass systems were installed on 1%.
“The data show that renewable energy is becoming increasingly common in new U.S. homes,” said NREL analyst Paul Torcellini. “As the cost of renewable energy technology continues to decline, we expect to see even more homes being powered by renewable energy in the years to come.”
According to the RECS data, the average cost of a PV system has declined by more than 50% since 2010, while the cost of a wind turbine has declined by more than 30%. The cost of a geothermal system has also declined, by about 20%.
“As the cost of renewable energy technology continues to decline, we expect to see even more homes being powered by renewable energy in the years to come.”
The NREL report found that the share of new houses with solar PV systems has grown steadily since 2010, when just 4% of new houses had PV systems. The share of new houses with wind turbines has also grown steadily over the same period, from just 1% in 2010 to 9% in 2015.
The growth of renewable energy in the U.S. housing market is in line with the overall growth of renewable energy in the U.S. electricity sector. According to the latest data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), renewable energy sources (including hydropower, biomass, wind, solar, and geothermal) provided nearly 10% of the nation’s electricity in 2015, up from just 4% in 2010.
Other related questions:
Q: How much energy did the US use in 2015?
A: In 2015, the United States used about 97.3 quadrillion British thermal units (Btu) of energy.
Q: What percentage of your homes electricity comes from renewable sources?
A: The percentage of homes powered by renewable energy sources varies widely by country. In the United States, for example, only about 10 percent of electricity comes from renewable sources, while in Denmark the figure is closer to 50 percent.
Q: What percent of energy is renewable 2021?
A: As of 2021, renewable energy accounts for about 11% of the world’s total energy supply.
Q: What percent of energy is used in homes?
A: There is no definitive answer to this question as it varies greatly depending on the specific home and the specific energy consumption habits of the occupants. However, according to the U.S. Department of Energy, the average American home uses approximately 10,649 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity per year, or about 30 kWh per day. This equates to an average electricity use of about 897 watts.