01791nas a2200229   4500008004100000245007800041210006900119260001200188520103000200653003101230653002001261653002001281653001401301653001801315653002701333653002701360653002801387100002001415700002301435700002101458856008201479       2019                        eng d00aAssessing the Potential to Reduce U.S. Building CO2 Emissions 80% by 20500 aAssessing the Potential to Reduce US Building CO2 Emissions 80 b  c08/20193 a<p>Buildings are responsible for 36% of CO2 emissions in the United States and will thus be integral to climate change mitigation; yet, no studies have comprehensively assessed the potential long-term CO2 emissions reductions from the U.S. buildings sector against national goals in a way that can be regularly updated in the future. We use Scout, a reproducible and granular model of U.S. building energy use, to investigate the potential for the U.S. buildings sector to reduce CO2 emissions 80% by 2050, consistent with the U.S. Mid-Century Strategy. We find that a combination of aggressive efficiency measures, electrification, and high renewable energy penetration can reduce CO2 emissions by 72%–78% relative to 2005 levels, just short of the target. Results are sufficiently disaggregated by technology and end use to inform targeted building energy policy approaches and establish a foundation for continual reassessment of technology development pathways that drive significant long-term emissions reductions.</p>10aBuilding energy efficiency10adecarbonization10aelectrification10aemissions10aenergy models10aenergy policy analysis10anational climate goals10apathways building stock1 aLangevin, Jared1 aHarris, Chioke, B.1 aReyna, Janet, L.  uhttps://simulationresearch.lbl.gov/publications/assessing-potential-reduce-us