Yes, your refrigerator, washer, and dryer may be Energy Star certified, but any good you’re doing is offset by your DVD player, TV and computer. That’s the simplified version of a new International Energy Agency report that says white goods—refrigerator, washing machines, etc.—are a lot more energy efficient than they used to be, but that consumer electronics—computers, TVs, etc—haven’t made the same progress. And we’re all doomed for it.

If people don’t stop buying these inefficient electronic devices, electricity consumptions will triple by 2030. (And how much is your electricity bill now?) That’s because energy consumption has increased, worldwide, an average of 3.4 percent per year since 1990. Not too many of us had multiple laptops, HDTVs, video game systems, charging cellphones, etc. all plugged in simultaneously, did we?

You may remember that the state of California was looking to curb the use of plasma and LCD HDTVs because they use so much energy. It’s all related, folks.

Silver lining: if the recession doesn’t let up we’ll all be too poor to afford to leave the 50-inch plasma on all day long.