In the fight against climate change, some Chicagoans are going all-electric at home: ‘Hopefully, this will be the future’
CHICAGO — At first glance, the scene is strikingly ordinary: just two working parents whipping up a quick family dinner. Scott Kroll stirs the pasta sauce. His wife, Clare Fauke, drops spaghetti into a pot of boiling water.
Still, something is missing: Look closely, and you’ll see that there are no flames rising from the burners.
A quick sniff reveals there’s no gassy smell in the air.
Fossil fuels, including natural gas, have been banished from the couple’s Logan Square home, where all the appliances, as well as the water heater and the heating and cooling system, run on electricity, a form of energy that can be produced without planet-warming greenhouse emissions.
“Hopefully, this will be the future,” Fauke said. “On a bigger scale, I think it could have a huge impact.”
At a time when Americans are beginning to wake up to the potential of all-electric buildings, people such as Fauke and Kroll are leading the way, part of a small but growing group of early adopters living on the clean energy frontier and reporting back on their experiences.
Buildings, including homes and businesses, are responsible for 29% of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Public discussion has focused on the role electric cars can play in helping the nation to achieveexperts are also highlighting to electricity at home.
