The New Efficiency Reality
Friday, December 31, 2010
By Elizabeth Cutright
When you’re focused on each step, it’s easy to get sidetracked and find yourself miles away from your final destination. So, what if we look at energy efficiency and reliability as a journey from a past littered with waste and misuse towards a future full of clean, renewable energy served up to a conscientious and informed public? How far off the path have we wandered in search of low-lying fruit and early adopters? And have we failed to notice that, sometimes, energy efficiency can be more of a burden than a benefit?
According to a recent survey by the Shelton Group, now that energy efficiency early adopters are on board, those still on the fence are either indifferent to energy conservation or are overestimating the effect of their attempts reigning in their consumption (www.sheltongroupinc.com/research/energy_pulse.php). The poll results also revealed that for many consumers, energy efficiency is no longer a foolproof money-saving option: The diminishing supply of traditional energy sources like fossil fuels, rising electrical rates, and the high cost associated with the latest energy-efficient products have actually increased costs for many. In fact, 32% of those polled cited money savings as a main reason to reduce their energy consumption, but 64% of respondents actually saw their energy bills increase despite their best efforts.
Now that traditional energy efficiency incentives have lost their strength, a new efficiency reality needs to be created. We are accustomed to speaking to the public’s pocketbook, but when the message falls on deaf ears, it’s time to change the tone and the frequency. Instead of framing efficiency as a budgeting decision, it should be touted as a responsibility. One way to do this would be to move efficiency away from saving energy and towards reducing waste.
Switching up the energy efficiency conversation in this way could also counteract the infamous “rebound effect.” Sometimes called the “take-back effect,” the rebound effect is most often used to describe the counterproductive behavior that occurs when new technologies designed to reduce use, in fact, inspire increased consumption—the ultimate result being that any savings or benefits that might be experienced by the increased efficiency are offset by increased usage (onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1465-7287.1997.tb00484.x/abstract).
There are some concrete examples of the impact of the rebound effect on energy efficiency and consumption. For example, in 1975 the US enacted the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) act. With the goal of improving the fuel efficiency of America’s vehicle fleet, CAFE set MPG standards for cars, trucks, and (eventually) SUVs. While CAFE was successful in improving fuel economy, a National Academies Report estimated that increased fuel efficiency actually led to more cars on the road, offsetting at least some initial gains in terms of emissions and fuel consumption (books.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=10172&page=9).
And in an August 2010 issue of The Journal of Physics, Harry Saunders and his colleagues at the Sandia National Laboratory discovered that lighting efficiency and lighting use operate in tandem—as one increases, so does the other (share.sandia.gov/news/resources/news_releases/leds-promise-brighter-future-but-not-‘greener’).
Efficiency. It’s a key word . . . a mandate . . . a state of being. And it is—after all is said and done—our ultimate goal: to find a way to reduce waste and use our resources more effectively. There’s no denying the benefits associated with increasing our energy efficiency, including a greater focus on renewable energy, smarter buildings, and increased reliability of our power systems. But while most of us associate efficiency with use reduction—using less and getting more—we are all also guilty of selective listening now that the message has become ubiquitous.
So while we’re on that road to a more perfect energy future, we must remember to keep on eye on efficiency, but we must also watch out for the other hazards of the road: increased consumption, consumer fatigue, and the rebound effect. Let’s use data on energy consumption and GHG emissions to reframe our focus so renewable resources can offset demand and become a larger piece of the energy resource pie. And let’s shift our benchmarks so that energy efficiency can continue to spur productivity and economic growth without inspiring an uptick in overall energy use. Let’s embrace a new efficiency reality.
Author's Bio: Elizabeth Cutright is the Editor of Distributed Energy magazine and Water Efficiency magazine |
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