Add to the list of broadband’s benefits: a cleaner, greener planet.

At the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners’ annual convention this week, regulators heard remarkable testimony about how broadband can help reduce carbon emissions. A lot.

That was the conclusion not only from an expert panel but also from a recent report by the Global e-Sustainability Initiative , a Brussels-based organization. The group concluded that information and communications technologies, including broadband, could cut annual Co2 emissions in the United States between 13 and 22 percent.

That translates into energy savings of between $140 and $240 billion (depending on fuel prices) and a drop in oil usage of between 11 to 21 percent.

Of course, none of this will happen unless broadband deployment continues and networks are upgraded to allow for telework, videoconferencing and other fuel-saving options.

But this discussion puts a useful context to all the recent jabbering about net neutrality. Simply put, Net neutrality does not mean that a single additional fiber line is deployed or cell tower is built. It does not provide even a one rural resident with better access.

The benefits of broadband are self-evident: economic growth, jobs and now, a greener planet. What purpose is served by letting new regulations interfere with all this?