Making Better Energy Choices
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Making Better Energy Choices Janet L. Sawin
State of the World 2004
The path we are on is unsustainable, but not inevitable Overview: •
Trends in global energy consumption
•
Why our current path is not sustainable
•
We can do far better without sacrificing quality of life
•
Forging a different path
Energy That Moves Us Transportation: The world’s fastest growing form of energy use, largely due to the rise of the private car
Rise of the Private Car Numbers
- 531 million private vehicles around the world - Numbers rising: 11 million more each year
Size and Weight - More than 50% of vehicles bought in the U.S. are SUVs or other light trucks
Distances Traveled - Around the world, we are taking more trips and traveling greater distances
Energy Where We Live and Work
Building Trends: • Energy use in buildings is rising rapidly • International Energy Agency predicts that world electricity demand will double between 2000 and 2030, with most rapid growth in people’s homes
Household Trends House size
- Average new U.S. home grew by 38% from 1975-2000 - Larger homes require more energy to build, heat, cool, and light
Household Size
- Number of people living in each home is declining - Thus, more homes are required for a given population
Appliances - Increasing in numbers, types, and sizes - Fastest growing energy consumers after cars
Energy in Everything We Buy Manufacturing: • Largest share of global energy use goes to manufacturing our vehicles, buildings, appliances, and even our food and clothes • Embodied energy: energy invested in a particular thing during its lifetime, from cradle to grave
• Much of the energy embodied in an item is that required to produce it
Embodied Energy Homes
- Can live in a typical U.S. home for 10 years before energy used in it exceeds energy that went into components and construction
Food - Worldwide, 21% of fossil fuel use goes to grow, process, package, transport, and cook our food
Cars
- Energy needed to manufacture cars, to build and maintain infrastructure - Petroleum refining devours about 8% of U.S. energy
Where We Have Been… TPES (millions of tons of oil equivalent)
Global Energy Use, 1900-2002 12,000 10,000 8,000 6,000 4,000 2,000 0 1900
1972 1975 1978 1981 1984 1987 1990 1993 1996 1999 2002 Source: International Energy Agency (IEA)
…and Where We Are Going!? (if current trends continue)
TPES (millions of tons of oil equivalent)
Past and Projected Global Energy Use, 1900-2030 18,000 15,000
actual
projected
12,000 9,000 6,000 3,000 0
1900
1976 1982 1988 1994 2000 2006 2012 2018 2024 2030 Source: International Energy Agency (IEA)
2. Our Unsustainable Path • Impacts of energy production and use – Environmental: air, soil, and water pollution, climate change – Social: impacts on human health, costs to communities where fuels are extracted – Economic and security: costs of relying on imported fuel from unstable regions of the world
• Disparities within and among countries • Resource availability
Extreme Imbalance • Huge disparity in energy consumption between and within industrial and developing nations • World’s richest people consume on average 25 times more energy than world’s poorest
Annual Per Capita Energy Consumption, Selected Countries 8.1
United States 4.1
Germany
4.1
Japan 2.4
Poland 1.1
Brazil
0.9
China*
0.5
India
0.3
Ethiopia 0
* China excludes Hong Kong
2 4 6 8 10 Per Capita Consumption of Commercial Energy (tons of oil equivalent)
Resource Availability • Impossible for everyone in developing world to consume as much as an average American Ex.: If everyone in China used as much oil as the average American, China alone would need more oil than the entire world produced in 2001
• Many analysts predict that, even at current world consumption rates, global oil production will peak before 2020
3. Energy Use and Quality of Life What are the objectives of increased energy use?
…growing our economy? …achieving a better quality of life! How much energy do we really need?
Energy Use and Quality of Life • Linkages exist: - Energy helps people meet their basic needs
- Desire for better quality of life drives further energy use But, no fixed relationship exists between energy use and perceived quality of life • Can demonstrate this by looking at indices used to measure quality of life: –Human Development Index (United Nations) –Well-being Index (Robert Prescott-Allen)
Energy Use and Quality of Life • For the world’s very poorest people, who use little energy, even a very small increase in energy consumption has significant impacts on value of Human Development Index (HDI) • Above a certain level, even very large increases in energy use have NO impact
Per Capita Energy Use and Human Development Index (HDI) 1.0
Value of HDI
0.8
0.6
Estimated HDI or Calculated
0.4
Actual HDI 0.2
0 0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
6000
7000
8000
9000
10 000
Per Capita Energy Consumption (KOE/H) Note: Data for 100 developed and developing countries.
Source: Suarez (1995)
Energy Use and Quality of Life Nation
Per Capita Well-being Energy Use Rank* Rank**
Share of Sweden’s Per Capita Energy Use (%)
10 10
100 100
Finland
1 1 2
6
112
Norway
3
8
Austria
5
26
Japan
24
19
United States
27
4
Russian Federation
65
17
Kuwait
119
3
United Arab Emirates
173
2
Sweden
* Out of 180 countries. ** Based on total primary energy supply.
104 61 70 140 71 162 190 190 0
100
Energy Use and Quality of Life Nation
Per Capita Well-being Energy Use Rank* Rank**
Share of Sweden’s Per Capita Energy Use (%) 100
Sweden
1
10
Finland
2
6
Norway
3
8
Austria
5
26
61 61
Japan
24
19
70
United States
27
4
Russian Federation
65
17
Kuwait
119
3
United Arab Emirates
173
2
* Out of 180 countries. ** Based on total primary energy supply.
112 104
140 140 71 162 190 0
100
Energy Use and Quality of Life • In fact, the way we produce and use energy degrades our quality of life through environmental, social, economic, and security impacts
Example: Rising costs of transportation -
Traffic fatalities Pollution and resulting health problems Congestion (lost time) Costs of road transport estimated to start at 5% of GDP for industrial countries, and go even higher in some developing countries
4. Forging a Different Path Waste Less and Conserve Energy - Only 28% of energy consumed worldwide converts to useful energy - Yet efficient technologies that provide same services with less energy already exist - Pursue all options for energy savings
Shift Energy Sources - Increase the share of energy that comes from renewable sources, like solar and wind
Two Types of Choice for Change •
Societal – through government policies
•
Family/Individual – within constraints imposed by availability and affordability, we all make choices about what to buy and how to use it
Making Better Energy Choices: Government Policies Pricing Policies: •
Taxes, subsidies, and infrastructure investments help to determine energy prices
Example: European governments tax cars and gas
more heavily, and invest more in public transit
Result: Europeans on average
own fewer, smaller, more efficient cars than Americans, and use them less
Making Better Energy Choices: Government Policies Pricing Policies: •
Also affect choices about energy sources
Example: Subsidies for fossil fuels and nuclear
ower remain many magnitudes higher than those for enewable energy and efficiency
Result: Deceptively low energy
prices that drive over-consumption and discourage the use of clean, sustainable alternatives
Making Better Energy Choices: Government Policies Appliance and Building Standards: •
They drive manufacturers to produce more energy-efficient products
Example: California state building codes updated
regularly, based on best available technologies
Result: California buildings far more efficient than US average
Making Better Energy Choices: Government Policies Take-Back Laws: •
They reduce the amount of energy embodied in products we use
Example: Several countries require manufacturers
to take back their products at the end of their useful life, for reuse or recycling
Result: Companies involved in
disassembly and recycling of their goods; improved quality and lifetime of products
Making Better Energy Choices: Individual Choices Green Power - More people are opting for renewable energy sources
Living Car Free - Shifting reliance from personal cars to public transit, cycling, walking, and car sharing programs
Green Buildings - Recycled and efficient materials, natural lighting and cooling, superior insulation, PVs, rooftop gardens
Other Ways to Save Energy Purchase items made from recycled materials - Ex.: Producing aluminum out of recycled material requires 95% less energy than making it from raw material Replace your 5 most-used light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs - If every U.S. household did this, more than 20 large power plants could be shut down
Other Ways to Save Energy Buy the most energy efficient appliances and vehicles available when replacing old ones - In the U.S., look for the “Energy Star” label Conserve energy by… - Turning off lights and appliances when not in use - Buying fewer items - Installing low-flow showerheads
Making Better Energy Choices •
Options and technologies are available to produce and use energy in a more sustainable manner, while maintaining a high quality of life
• Forging a more sustainable energy path is a matter of our everyday choices and political will to enact the right policies
About the Author
Janet Sawin is a Senior Researcher at the Worldwatch Institute
More information on
State of the World 2004 at www.worldwatch.org
State of the World 2004
The path we are on is unsustainable, but not inevitable Overview: •
Trends in global energy consumption
•
Why our current path is not sustainable
•
We can do far better without sacrificing quality of life
•
Forging a different path
Energy That Moves Us Transportation: The world’s fastest growing form of energy use, largely due to the rise of the private car
Rise of the Private Car Numbers
- 531 million private vehicles around the world - Numbers rising: 11 million more each year
Size and Weight - More than 50% of vehicles bought in the U.S. are SUVs or other light trucks
Distances Traveled - Around the world, we are taking more trips and traveling greater distances
Energy Where We Live and Work
Building Trends: • Energy use in buildings is rising rapidly • International Energy Agency predicts that world electricity demand will double between 2000 and 2030, with most rapid growth in people’s homes
Household Trends House size
- Average new U.S. home grew by 38% from 1975-2000 - Larger homes require more energy to build, heat, cool, and light
Household Size
- Number of people living in each home is declining - Thus, more homes are required for a given population
Appliances - Increasing in numbers, types, and sizes - Fastest growing energy consumers after cars
Energy in Everything We Buy Manufacturing: • Largest share of global energy use goes to manufacturing our vehicles, buildings, appliances, and even our food and clothes • Embodied energy: energy invested in a particular thing during its lifetime, from cradle to grave
• Much of the energy embodied in an item is that required to produce it
Embodied Energy Homes
- Can live in a typical U.S. home for 10 years before energy used in it exceeds energy that went into components and construction
Food - Worldwide, 21% of fossil fuel use goes to grow, process, package, transport, and cook our food
Cars
- Energy needed to manufacture cars, to build and maintain infrastructure - Petroleum refining devours about 8% of U.S. energy
Where We Have Been… TPES (millions of tons of oil equivalent)
Global Energy Use, 1900-2002 12,000 10,000 8,000 6,000 4,000 2,000 0 1900
1972 1975 1978 1981 1984 1987 1990 1993 1996 1999 2002 Source: International Energy Agency (IEA)
…and Where We Are Going!? (if current trends continue)
TPES (millions of tons of oil equivalent)
Past and Projected Global Energy Use, 1900-2030 18,000 15,000
actual
projected
12,000 9,000 6,000 3,000 0
1900
1976 1982 1988 1994 2000 2006 2012 2018 2024 2030 Source: International Energy Agency (IEA)
2. Our Unsustainable Path • Impacts of energy production and use – Environmental: air, soil, and water pollution, climate change – Social: impacts on human health, costs to communities where fuels are extracted – Economic and security: costs of relying on imported fuel from unstable regions of the world
• Disparities within and among countries • Resource availability
Extreme Imbalance • Huge disparity in energy consumption between and within industrial and developing nations • World’s richest people consume on average 25 times more energy than world’s poorest
Annual Per Capita Energy Consumption, Selected Countries 8.1
United States 4.1
Germany
4.1
Japan 2.4
Poland 1.1
Brazil
0.9
China*
0.5
India
0.3
Ethiopia 0
* China excludes Hong Kong
2 4 6 8 10 Per Capita Consumption of Commercial Energy (tons of oil equivalent)
Resource Availability • Impossible for everyone in developing world to consume as much as an average American Ex.: If everyone in China used as much oil as the average American, China alone would need more oil than the entire world produced in 2001
• Many analysts predict that, even at current world consumption rates, global oil production will peak before 2020
3. Energy Use and Quality of Life What are the objectives of increased energy use?
…growing our economy? …achieving a better quality of life! How much energy do we really need?
Energy Use and Quality of Life • Linkages exist: - Energy helps people meet their basic needs
- Desire for better quality of life drives further energy use But, no fixed relationship exists between energy use and perceived quality of life • Can demonstrate this by looking at indices used to measure quality of life: –Human Development Index (United Nations) –Well-being Index (Robert Prescott-Allen)
Energy Use and Quality of Life • For the world’s very poorest people, who use little energy, even a very small increase in energy consumption has significant impacts on value of Human Development Index (HDI) • Above a certain level, even very large increases in energy use have NO impact
Per Capita Energy Use and Human Development Index (HDI) 1.0
Value of HDI
0.8
0.6
Estimated HDI or Calculated
0.4
Actual HDI 0.2
0 0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
6000
7000
8000
9000
10 000
Per Capita Energy Consumption (KOE/H) Note: Data for 100 developed and developing countries.
Source: Suarez (1995)
Energy Use and Quality of Life Nation
Per Capita Well-being Energy Use Rank* Rank**
Share of Sweden’s Per Capita Energy Use (%)
10 10
100 100
Finland
1 1 2
6
112
Norway
3
8
Austria
5
26
Japan
24
19
United States
27
4
Russian Federation
65
17
Kuwait
119
3
United Arab Emirates
173
2
Sweden
* Out of 180 countries. ** Based on total primary energy supply.
104 61 70 140 71 162 190 190 0
100
Energy Use and Quality of Life Nation
Per Capita Well-being Energy Use Rank* Rank**
Share of Sweden’s Per Capita Energy Use (%) 100
Sweden
1
10
Finland
2
6
Norway
3
8
Austria
5
26
61 61
Japan
24
19
70
United States
27
4
Russian Federation
65
17
Kuwait
119
3
United Arab Emirates
173
2
* Out of 180 countries. ** Based on total primary energy supply.
112 104
140 140 71 162 190 0
100
Energy Use and Quality of Life • In fact, the way we produce and use energy degrades our quality of life through environmental, social, economic, and security impacts
Example: Rising costs of transportation -
Traffic fatalities Pollution and resulting health problems Congestion (lost time) Costs of road transport estimated to start at 5% of GDP for industrial countries, and go even higher in some developing countries
4. Forging a Different Path Waste Less and Conserve Energy - Only 28% of energy consumed worldwide converts to useful energy - Yet efficient technologies that provide same services with less energy already exist - Pursue all options for energy savings
Shift Energy Sources - Increase the share of energy that comes from renewable sources, like solar and wind
Two Types of Choice for Change •
Societal – through government policies
•
Family/Individual – within constraints imposed by availability and affordability, we all make choices about what to buy and how to use it
Making Better Energy Choices: Government Policies Pricing Policies: •
Taxes, subsidies, and infrastructure investments help to determine energy prices
Example: European governments tax cars and gas
more heavily, and invest more in public transit
Result: Europeans on average
own fewer, smaller, more efficient cars than Americans, and use them less
Making Better Energy Choices: Government Policies Pricing Policies: •
Also affect choices about energy sources
Example: Subsidies for fossil fuels and nuclear
ower remain many magnitudes higher than those for enewable energy and efficiency
Result: Deceptively low energy
prices that drive over-consumption and discourage the use of clean, sustainable alternatives
Making Better Energy Choices: Government Policies Appliance and Building Standards: •
They drive manufacturers to produce more energy-efficient products
Example: California state building codes updated
regularly, based on best available technologies
Result: California buildings far more efficient than US average
Making Better Energy Choices: Government Policies Take-Back Laws: •
They reduce the amount of energy embodied in products we use
Example: Several countries require manufacturers
to take back their products at the end of their useful life, for reuse or recycling
Result: Companies involved in
disassembly and recycling of their goods; improved quality and lifetime of products
Making Better Energy Choices: Individual Choices Green Power - More people are opting for renewable energy sources
Living Car Free - Shifting reliance from personal cars to public transit, cycling, walking, and car sharing programs
Green Buildings - Recycled and efficient materials, natural lighting and cooling, superior insulation, PVs, rooftop gardens
Other Ways to Save Energy Purchase items made from recycled materials - Ex.: Producing aluminum out of recycled material requires 95% less energy than making it from raw material Replace your 5 most-used light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs - If every U.S. household did this, more than 20 large power plants could be shut down
Other Ways to Save Energy Buy the most energy efficient appliances and vehicles available when replacing old ones - In the U.S., look for the “Energy Star” label Conserve energy by… - Turning off lights and appliances when not in use - Buying fewer items - Installing low-flow showerheads
Making Better Energy Choices •
Options and technologies are available to produce and use energy in a more sustainable manner, while maintaining a high quality of life
• Forging a more sustainable energy path is a matter of our everyday choices and political will to enact the right policies
About the Author
Janet Sawin is a Senior Researcher at the Worldwatch Institute
More information on
State of the World 2004 at www.worldwatch.org
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