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| 03-10-2009 9:34:38 AM - 5 Comments | Posted By: Alan Meier |
| March/April 2009 Editorial: How Private Should Utility Bills Be? |
 The cover of this issue depicts extraordinarily useful information: the homes whose attics are inadequately insulated. British residents can go onto the Web and find their homes—or their neighbors’ homes—to determine their thermal efficiency.
This aerial photo, along with the widely available photos in Google Earth and other services, illustrates the rapidly changing definitions of privacy. Thirty years ago, various groups in the United States used high-flying planes to take infrared photos like this one for the same purpose. But those programs were scotched by people outraged by the invasion of privacy. Now, in the 21st century, we hardly complain when views of our backyards and street-fronts are visible on the Worldwide Web.
Meanwhile, another incident reminded us of the value of public disclosure of efficiency information. The city of Austin, Texas, released the names of the ten largest residential water consumers. The home of bicycle racer Lance Armstrongtopped the list. Armstrong conceded that he had not known about his high consumption, but you can be sure that he has already taken measures to ensure that it won’t happen again because that kind of publicity was not welcome.
Perhaps it is time to consider a similar disclosure for energy consumption. Global climate change has taught us that my carbon footprint affects the well-being of my neighbors, so perhaps my neighbors have a right to know how much energy I consume. Of course there’s a sensationalist aspect to knowing the ten largest energy users in a community but other, more positive, forms of disclosure could prove more broadly useful than a “name and shame” strategy.
The first instance occurs when a house is offered for sale. Prospective buyers should have access to utility bills. To be sure, a home’s energy consumption is affected by its occupants but it’s harder to disguise a guzzler if the utility bills are available. And there is no faster way for an “efficiency premium” to appear in the housing market than through automatic disclosure of utility bills. Several regions are already contemplating enacting this requirement.
The second instance occurs when consumers try to understand their own utility bills. Most utilities now offer a comparison of this month’s use to last year’s use. That’s a valuable piece of information but probably less influential than knowing how your consumption compares to your neighbors’. How would you feel if you discovered that your home consumed 50% more than the average of homes on your street? Your block? Your zip code? Sociologists have long known the influence of peer pressure, yet this has not been harnessed to save energy. Why? One reason is our possibly outdated concepts of privacy enshrined in regulations established by public utility commissions. Another reason is the sadly antiquated software running most utilities’ billing computers; the utilities can’t easily extract the data to make these comparisons. Nevertheless, a few utilities are already providing these sorts of comparisons.
Leaders in climate policy are beginning to recognize that strictly technical and economic measures will be insufficient to achieve large reductions in energy use and carbon emissions. We need complementary policies to stimulate positive behavior and attitudes. More public disclosure of energy consumption information is one strategy to achieve that goal.
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| Date & Time |
Comment |
By |
03-21-2009
6:47:28 PM |
I actually publish my utility bill information each month on my blog Energy Watcher (http://www.energywatcher.com). I believe that if everyone's utility bills were available, we would be able to see at a glance how we were doing with our energy consumption, and as Lord Kelvin said, "If you cannot measure it, you cannot improve it." |
John Westenhaver |
04-01-2009
10:14:44 AM |
Could you identify the utilities that do this comparison? I'd like to find out more.
Personally, I publish my own utility bills every month on my website, www.energywatcher.com. I agree fully that utility bill information should be public -- peer pressure is one of the most effective tools we have in the fight against global warming, and the same scorn that we have offered to SUV drivers should also be offered to people who are wasteful about home energy usage.
Actually, you've given me an idea for a blog post. |
John Westenhaver |
04-06-2009
6:26:13 PM |
Interesting point. I think it's also important for people to understand how much power they use in their OWN lives. Sure we see our electricity bills, but I think people would be much more energy conscious if they could SEE just how much energy they use boiling water...or leaving their computer on standby. There are a lot of little home energy metres that help with this...it's a good consideration for the green home.
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Paige Green |
04-09-2009
8:51:25 AM |
I couldn't agree more - Lance Armstrong will cut back on his water usage. Perhaps in his case it will be because of bad publicity, but for many of us, the cut back would be the result simply of knowing what our usage is. Many of us receive utility bills that don't mean much to us. They are confusing and lack detail. Until that changes, we may be well advised to take matters into our own hands. Electricity monitors that let us know how much we use, when, and how much it costs us, lead consumers to cut back on energy usage whether or not the rest of the world knows. Whether consumers elect to use a whole house monitor like TED or a Blue Line PowerCost, or an appliance tester like Kill A Watt, studies have shown that their behavior will change. (You can check monitors out here: www.energycircle.com). The savings impact both the earth and our wallets, and most of us really need that right now.
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@PeggyInToronto |
06-09-2009
8:37:02 AM |
Comparing your use to your neighbors is stupid. It's apples to oranges. My use is my business, not anyone elses. While I teach energy efficiency for a living, and do my best to practice what I preach, I still believe my bills should not be public knowledge. Since I work for a utility and have access to energy consumption, which is something I review with our customers, any time someone says "my neighbor only pays blah, blah, why is my bill so much higher....", I cringe. The customer is already defensive and usually not that open to learning how to conserve. They are too wrapped up in comparing their $$ with what their neighbor pays. Too many variables to make comparisons valid. |
alfakatzz |
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