GDP

Shifts in the generation mix in recent years have had an enormous impact on carbon dioxide emissions. For 2015, the carbon intensity of total generation was more than 20 percent lower than in 2005, accounting for 476 million metric tons in reductions. The dramatic decline is our focus here in Part 2.

The economic argument for investments in the smart grid is clear: the payback from those technologies in the U.S. is likely three to six times greater than the money invested, and grows with each sequence of grid improvement.