Heat pumps were supposed to help save the planet. But they've run into a bump. [View all]

Last edited Mon Oct 21, 2024, 10:23 PM - Edit history (1)

Sales of solar panels, batteries and electric vehicles have soared over the last few years — helping to slow global warming and take dangerous pollutants out of the atmosphere.

But one technology critical to fighting climate change is lagging, thanks to a combination of high interest rates, rising costs, misinformation and the cycle of home construction. Adoption of heat pumps, one of the primary ways to cut emissions from buildings, has slowed in the United States and stalled in Europe, endangering the switch to clean energy.

Heat pump investment in the United States has dropped by 4 percent in the past two years, even as sales of EVs have almost doubled, according to data from MIT and the Rhodium Group. In 13 European countries, heat pump sales dropped nearly in half in the first half of 2024, putting the European Union off-track for its climate goals.

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Close to 5 million American homes are still using oil for heating. People like to claim that it's clean energy, but it produces 50% plus more greenhouse gases than a heat pump, depending on the various sources of electricity.