WASHINGTON POST • October 21, 2024
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% in the past two years. Experts point to lags in construction, high interest rates, and general belt-tightening from inflation. 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. Heat pumps – essentially air conditioners that can also work in reverse, heating a space as well as cooling it – are crucial to making buildings more climate-friendly. Maine met one of its key climate plan goals two years early, installing 100,000 heat pumps by 2025.