Energy conservation can result in increased financial capital, environmental quality, national security, personal security, and human comfort. Individuals and organizations that are direct consumers of energy choose to conserve energy to reduce energy costs and promote economic security. Industrial and commercial users can increase energy use efficiency to maximize profit.
Electrical energy conservation is an important element of energy policy. Energy conservation reduces the energy consumption and energy demand per capita and thus offsets some of the growth in energy supply needed to keep up with population growth. This reduces the rise in energy costs, and can reduce the need for new power plants, and energy imports. The reduced energy demand can provide more flexibility in choosing the most preferred methods of energy production.
[edit] Climate change
By reducing emissions, energy conservation is an important part of lessening climate change. Energy conservation facilitates the replacement of non-renewable resources with renewable energy. Energy conservation is often the most economical solution to energy shortages, and is a more environmentally being alternative to increased energy production. Energy efficiency or resource efficiency are other terms describing techniques to get more output with less energy with a view on sustainable development. As it is a complex matter, to secure energy efficiency, life cycle analysis are often needed to evaluate the total impact of a tool from the craddle to the grave in terms of energy consumption and other side effects. The chemical industry has given some examples
of such analysis so to avoid to be a climate fashion victim.
[edit] Energy conservation by country
[edit] The Republic of India
Petroleum Conservation Research Association (PCRA) www.pcra.org
is an Indian government body created in 1976 and engaged in promoting energy efficiency and conservation in every walk of life. In the recent past PCRA has done mass media campaigns in television, radio & print media. An impact assessment survey by a third party revealed that due to these mega campaigns by PCRA, overall awareness level have gone up leading to saving of fossil fuels worth crores of rupees besides reducing pollution.
Bureau of Energy Efficiency is an Indian governmental organization created in 2002 responsible for promoting energy efficiency and conservation.
[edit] Japan
Advertising with high energy in Shinjuku, Japan.
Since the 1973 oil crisis, energy conservation has been an issue in Japan. All oil based fuel is imported, so indigenous sustainable energy is being developed.
The Energy Conservation Center
promotes energy efficiency in every aspect of Japan. Private entities are implementing the efficient use of energy for industries.
[edit] Lebanon
In Lebanon and since 2002 The Lebanese Center for Energy Conservation (LCEC) has been promoting the development of efficient and rational uses of energy and the use of renewable energy at the consumer level. It was created as a project financed by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the Ministry of Energy Water (MEW) under the management of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and gradually established itself as an independent technical national center although it continues to be supported by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) as indicated in the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between MEW and UNDP on June 18, 2007.
[edit] New Zealand
In New Zealand the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority is responsible for promoting energy efficiency and conservation.
[edit] European Union
See also: Energy policy of the European Union
At the end of 2006, the European Union-EU pledged to cut its annual consumption of primary energy by 20% by 2020.[1] The 'European Union Energy Efficiency Action Plan' is long awaited. As part of the EU's SAVE Programme
,[2] aimed at promoting energy efficiency and encouraging energy-saving behaviour, the Boiler Efficiency Directive[3] specifies minimum levels of efficiency for boilers fired with liquid or gaseous fuels. The European Commission is funding large-scale research projects to learn about success factors for effective energy conservation programmes.[4]
[edit] United Kingdom
Main article: Energy use and conservation in the United Kingdom
Energy conservation in the United Kingdom has been receiving increased attention over recent years. Key factors behind this are the Government's commitment to reducing carbon emissions, the projected 'energy gap' in UK electricity generation, and the increasing reliance on imports to meet national energy needs. Domestic housing and road transport are currently the two biggest problem areas.
Responsibility for energy conservation fall between three Government departments although is led by the Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC). The Department for Communities and Local Government (CLG) is still responsible for energy standards in buildings, and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) retains a residual interest in energy insofar as it leads to emissions of CO2, the main greenhouse gas. The Department for Transport retains many responsibilities for energy conservation in transport. At an operational level, there are two main non-departmental governmental bodies ("quangoes") - the Energy Saving Trust, working mainly in the domestic sector with some interest in transport, and the Carbon Trust, working with industry and innovative energy technologies. In addition there are many independent NGOs working in the sector such as the Centre for Sustainable Energy in Bristol or the National Energy Foundation in Milton Keynes, and directly helping consumers make informed choices on energy efficiency sust-it
[edit] United States
Main article: Energy conservation in the United States
The United States is currently the largest single consumer of energy. The U.S. Department of Energy categorizes national energy use in four broad sectors: transportation, residential, commercial, and industrial.[5]
Energy usage in transportation and residential sectors, about half of U.S. energy consumption, is largely controlled by individual consumers. Commercial and industrial energy expenditures are determined by businesses entities and other facility managers. National energy policy has a significant effect on energy usage across all four sectors, and its strengthening is part of the 2010 Presidential-Congressional legislative debate.
[edit] Issues with energy conservation
Advocates and critics of various forms and policies of energy conservation debate some issues, such as:
* Standard economic theory suggests that technological improvements which increase energy efficiency, tends to increase, rather than reduce, energy use. This is called the Jevons Paradox and occurs through two channels. Firstly, increased energy efficiency makes the use of energy relatively cheaper, thus encouraging increased use. Secondly, increased energy efficiency leads to increased economic growth, which pulls up energy use in the whole economy. This does not imply that increased fuel efficiency is worthless, increased fuel efficiency enables greater production and a higher quality of life. However, in order to reduce energy consumption, efficiency gains must be paired with a government intervention that reduces demand (a green tax, cap and trade).[6][7]
* Some retailers argue that bright lighting stimulates purchasing. However, health studies have demonstrated that headache, stress, blood pressure, fatigue and worker error all generally increase with the common over-illumination present in many workplace and retail settings.[8][9] It has been shown that natural daylighting increases productivity levels of workers, while reducing energy consumption.[10]
* The use of telecommuting by major corporations is a significant opportunity to conserve energy, as many Americans now work in service jobs that enable them to work from home instead of commuting to work each day.[11]
* Electric motors consume more than 60% of all electrical energy generated and are responsible for the loss of 10 to 20% of all electricity converted into mechanical energy.[12]
* Consumers are often poorly informed of the savings of energy efficient products. The research one must put into conserving energy often is too time consuming and costly when there are cheaper products and technology available using today's fossil fuels.[13] Some governments and NGOs are attempting to reduce this complexity with ecolabels that make differences in energy efficiency easy to research while shopping.
* Technology needs to be able to change behavioral patterns, it can do this by allowing energy users, business and residential, to see graphically the impact their energy use can have in their workplace or homes. Advanced real-time energy metering is able to help people save energy by their actions. Rather than become wasteful automatic energy saving technologies, real-time energy monitors and meters such as the Energy Detective, Enigin Plc's Eniscope, Ecowizard, or solutions like EDSA'a Paladin Live are examples of such solutions [14]
* It is frequently argued that effective energy conservation requires more than informing consumers about energy consumption, for example through smart meters at home or ecolabels while shopping. People need practical and tailored advice how to reduce energy consumption in order to make change easy and lasting.[15] This applies to both efficiency investments, such as investment in building renovation, or behavioral change, for example turning down the heating. To provide the kind of information and support people need to invest money, time and effort in energy conservation, it is imprtant to understand and link to people's topical concerns.[16]
* In deregulated states commercial utility customers have the ability to compare energy rates
among available electricity and natural gas providers.
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