Town of Summerville Planning Area - BCD Council of Governments

Table EN4: Fuel Consumption for Households in Town of SummervilleVehicleType2008 USAverage FuelConsumptionPer Vehicle(Gallons perYear)2008 SCAverage FuelConsumptionper Capita(Gallons perYear)Number ofHH inSummervilleTotalConsumption2008FuelRate(MPG)September2010 Costper GallonTotalExpendituresPassengerCars 522 N/A N/A N/A 22.6 N/A N/AVans,PickupTrucks,andSUV’s 605 N/A N/A N/A 18.1 N/A N/ALargeTrucks 4,075 N/A N/A N/A 7.7 N/A N/AAllMotorVehicles 667 582.68 13,50421,245,156 gallons 17.4 $2.53$53,750,246Sources: 2006‐2008 American Community Survey, US Census Bureau; US Energy Information Administration, Gasbuddy.comRenewable EnergyIn recent years, the extraction of fossil fuels has increased substantially in cost and effort to obtain, bothwithin the US and elsewhere in the world. Consequently, the availability of easily obtained fossil fuelshas diminished. As the awareness of the effects of the use of fossil fuels on the environment hasbecome more documented over time, customers and businesses have increasingly consideredrenewable energy as a viable source of power for home or business use.In South Carolina, the largest renewable energy source has traditionally been the power produced bythe rivers located throughout the state. For the residents and businesses located within the SummervillePlanning Area, whose power is primarily supplied via facilities owned by Santee Cooper, the renewableenergy created at the hydroelectric dams at Lakes Moultrie and Marion are the main source ofelectricity. However, the ability to draw more power from the existing water supply is limited, due toEnergy Element Page 12