The Case for Equitable Building Decarb in the Midwest

Electrifying buildings will reduce carbon emissions in the Midwest—and those pollution benefits can start today. For example, analysis from Elevate Energy and the Rocky Mountain Institute shows that in Illinois, where the burning of fossil fuels in buildings accounts for 18 percent of the state’s energy-related carbon emissions, swapping out a gas furnace at the time of replacement for a super energy efficient electric heat pump will save emissions over the lifetime of the appliance, even with conservative assumptions about renewable energy growth in the state. This holds true across the Midwest: even if the energy mix were to stay as is (thankfully, we expect the power grid to get much cleaner, as outlined below) heat pumps will reduce carbon emissions in all Midwestern states compared to gas furnaces.

What’s even better is that the Midwestern states are taking ambitious steps toward lowering the high level of carbon emissions associated with electricity generation, ensuring the power that flows to high efficiency electric appliances like heat pump space and water heaters is progressively cleaner, including:

• Efforts to pass the Clean Energy Jobs Act in Illinois, which will bring the state’s grid to 100% clean power in the coming decades;  
• Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer's executive order on climate, which sets an economy-wide target of carbon-neutrality by mid-century;
• Government and utility commitments to reduce carbon emissions in Minnesota; and 
• Growing utility-scale solar capacity in Ohio. 

As the electric grid becomes cleaner across the region, the emissions reductions from installing electric technologies like highly efficient heat pumps will be even greater.

Given the urgency of the climate crisis, and the reality that gas infrastructure built today will continue to emit greenhouse gasses for years to come, it is imperative that we begin the process of decarbonizing our buildings now. However, it is not enough to simply cut carbon emissions. Communities of color face long-standing systemic inequality in energy burden, health, housing, and economic opportunity. By putting equity first, building decarbonization policy can avoid exacerbating, and instead begin to address, such inequalities.

What is “Equitable Decarbonization”?

As the Greenlining Institute and the Energy Efficiency for All coalition lay out in their Equitable Building Electrification Framework, equitable decarbonization recognizes that Black, Brown, Indigenous, and low-income communities face historic and ongoing systemic discrimination, resulting in vast disparities in health, homeownership, economic opportunity, and more. Understanding these injustices, equitable decarbonization efforts prioritize the health and resilience of marginalized communities, providing the benefits of reducing emissions—cleaner air, healthier homes, more affordable energy, and good jobs—to those who need them most. At the same time, taking an equity-first approach is an initial step toward avoiding unintended consequences. An equity-first approach would both ensure that all households can cut their gas connections to avoid being stuck paying for an increasingly expensive gas system and also enact housing protections to keep residents from being displaced by upgrades in their buildings or neighborhoods.

Equity is as much about the process as it is about the product. Implementing equitable building decarbonization will not be possible without listening to, learning from, and following leadership of frontline communities. Equitable building decarbonization builds power in and gives control over policy-making to impacted communities. According to the Equitable Electrification Framework, stakeholders must:

1. Begin by assessing communities’ needs; 
2. Establish community-led decision making; 
3. Develop metrics that track both clean energy and community benefits; 
4. Ensure consistent funding and coordination across programs; 
5. Use tracking metrics and feedback to improve existing and future programs.

While the policy solutions resulting from such a process will be tailored to the specific community, prioritizing equity would generally mean considering holistic strategies like “providing free appliance replacements, creating rules that protect against energy bill and rent increases, aggressively reducing energy use and improving health and safety within our homes, and targeting green workforce opportunities to workers who live in [environmental and social justice] communities.” Equitable decarbonization requires thoughtful and crosscutting solutions that utilize not only energy policy, but also housing, health, and labor solutions to create meaningful benefits for historically underserved communities while minimizing potential unintended consequences.

The Importance of Equitable Decarbonization in the Midwest

Communities across the Midwest can benefit from the full suite of potential benefits from equitable building decarbonization—healthier homes, lower energy burdens, more stable housing, and access to good jobs. However, those benefits can only be accessed by following the process discussed above, centering impacted community leadership, and tailoring policy to meet community needs.

Healthier Homes

Black, Indigenous, and other communities of color nationwide experience disproportionately poor air quality. This is especially true in Midwestern states, where non-white communities face some of the most disproportionate particular matter burden—meaning communities of color are more likely to be exposed to hazardous particle pollution created by fossil fuel combustion. Furthermore, racial disparities in proximity to polluting facilities are significantly greater in the metropolitan areas of the Midwest than other parts of the country.

Buildings contribute to this dangerous air pollution. Gas appliances like stoves, furnaces, and water heaters release carbon monoxide, nitrogen compounds, and other air pollutants, meaning they can have negative impacts on health. A comprehensive review of literature found that children living in a home with gas cooking had a 42% increased risk of experiencing asthma symptoms.

By switching to electric appliances, occupants can breathe healthier air and improve outdoor air quality as well. These upgrades are especially needed in the communities that face the worst pollution. Building decarbonization offers an opportunity to better the health and comfort of homes. However, without prioritizing equity (i.e. offering electric appliances at low or no cost and targeting programs toward pollution burdened communities), decarbonization initiatives risk only improving indoor air quality for families that can afford electric appliances and building upgrades, instead of families that would benefit most.