How much energy do building codes save over time? That’s the question that a new report released last week from the Department of Energy (DOE) aims to answer — and the answers show the results can be mammoth, both in terms of consumers’ utility bill savings and avoided carbon emissions.

The DOE found that energy codes with modest updates over the years could save consumers $126 billion on their utility bills from 2010 to 2040. This equates to a carbon pollution reduction of 841 million metric tons, equivalent to the greenhouse gases emitted by 177 million passenger vehicles driven for one year or the carbon dioxide emissions from 245 coal power plants for one year.

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