How Does Rhode Island Compare to Other States?

There is reason to compare Rhode Island's energy use to other states; by looking at trends in state by state consumption it is clear that Rhode Island is like most other states in demonstrating an increase in energy usage. However, this does not have to be the case. In the past 7 years both Delaware and Massachusetts have decreased their total energy use. Rhode Island policy makers have the opportunity to examine this data and determine ways that residents could decrease their energy use based on the successes in both Delaware and Massachusetts.

Below is a chart comparing total energy consumption (in trillion Btu's) for Rhode Island and the other New England states and Delaware and New Jersey. These states were chosen for a several reasons. Rhode Island is often compared to or lumped with the other New England states as part of a region within the US In addition, Rhode Island is closest to Delaware in size and relates to New Jersey for having similar densities of people. In this chart the first number is the total energy in trillion Btu's and the second number is the energy consumed in Btu/per capita.

From this chart Rhode Island was one of six states to increase energy use over the years 1990 to 1997. Currently, Rhode Island is doing fairly well-we are a small state and automatically use less energy. However, policy makers should not ignore that the general trend in Rhode Island energy use is increasing. The only two states that decreased their energy consumption were Delaware and Massachusetts. It would be interesting to discover how Delaware and Massachusetts were able to decrease their energy use and/or how those states became more efficient users of energy.

MTCE Increases in the Residential Sector

Heating and Cooling Days in the State

Types of Energy Available to Rhode Island Residents and Consumption Trends

Rhode Islanders Should Expect a Price Shock This Winter

How Does Rhode Island Compare to Other States?

RI Indicators Home Page / Energy Home Page