OCR Text |
Show a matter of need Instead of looking nostalgically backward, the time has come for environmentalists to join hands with industry, scientists and technologists in a cooperative co-operative effort to make future growth compatible with the needs of both man and his environment. For example, in the Housing and Urban Development Devel-opment Act of 1968, Congress reaffirmed as the national housing goal "the realization as soon as feasible of the goal of a decent home and a suitable living environment for every American family." Congress determined that this goal could "be substantially sub-stantially achieved with the next decade by the construction con-struction or rehabilitation of 26 million housing units." A leading authority points out that these figures fi-gures indicate a projected ". . .net increase in housing units of 13.5 million. Of these additional units it is estimated that 7.7 million (57 per cent) will be owner-occupied and 5.8 million (43 per cent) will be rental units. Attainment of this goal will have a major impact on electric consumption. In 1970 the annual average residential use of electricity in the United States was 7,066 kilowatt-hours. Thus, assuming no increase in the intensity of use of electricity elec-tricity per residential customer, the attainment of our national housing goal brings with it a demand for 95,391 million additional kilowatt-hours of electricity elec-tricity by 1978 in the residential sector alone an increase of 21.3 per cent. . ." These figures, it must be remembered, are based on a law passed by Congress. They represent minimum growth necessary to achieve a level of decent housing which the people's elected representatives repre-sentatives have determined is necessary for the welfare wel-fare of the nation. This is no promoter's blueprint to create growth for the sake of growth. |