In the United States today, 26 million low-income households burn costly, health-damaging, and climate-disrupting fossil fuels inside their homes. Many of these communities are also highly vulnerable to the extreme weather events brought on by climate change. They lack comparable access to cooling and resilient infrastructure, as well as the financial means to relocate. In order to meet the country’s climate goals and protect public health, we need to retrofit these homes through “beneficial electrification.”
This report by RMI titled “Decarbonizing Homes: Improving Health in Low-Income Communities through Beneficial Electrification”, presents a holistic approach to electrifying housing in low-income communities. This approach will lower housing cost burdens, improve housing quality to create a safe and healthful indoor environment, reduce climate pollution, and enable buildings to more easily manage electricity demand. State and local governments can help deliver these benefits through bold action, particularly as the federal government considers investing hundreds of billions of dollars to help out.
Download the report here