Reported Behavioural Patterns of Electricity Use among Low-Income Households in Makhanda, South Africa

Mutumbi, Uzziah; Thondhlana, Gladman; Ruwanza, Sheunesu

doi:10.3390/su13137271

Cited by 12 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…It is important to note that efforts to reduce energy consumption in the residential sector should not focus only on improving the EE label to encourage the purchase of high energy-efficiency appliances but also on day-to-day energy-saving behaviours [64,65]. All the experts interviewed agree that to achieve substantial energy reductions and mitigate climate change, policy efforts should be focused on both investment in EE and energy use in the home.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing the EU Energy Efficiency Label for Appliances: Issues, Potential Improvements and Challenges

Ayala

Solà

2022

Energies

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The EU Energy Efficiency (EE) label for appliances, readjusted in March 2021 (Directive 2017/1369/EU), is a key instrument for nudging consumers towards more energy-efficient purchases. However, its effectiveness depends on its design, the information provided and consumers’ understanding of and trust in it. This paper seeks to contribute to the assessment of the EE label for appliances and to identify issues, potential improvements and challenges for successfully nudging consumers towards highly energy-efficient choices. To that end, 33 in-depth interviews have been conducted with three different groups (citizens, appliance retailers and experts in energy) to ascertain the opinions and experiences of different agents as to consumers’ preferences and opinions on EE and energy consumption. We focus on purchasing decision-making by Spanish consumers for the three main appliances: washing machines, fridges and dishwashers. The EE label for appliances seems to be well-known and reliable for consumers. The main weakness lies in people’s understanding of its content rather than in its design. The coloured alphabetical EE scale seems to be well understood and the restored A–G scale of the readjusted label positively valued. However, we find comprehension issues with regard to the information on energy consumption and the technical data at the bottom of the label. Monetary information on energy consumption seems to facilitate consumers’ understanding, but it is technically challenging due to the complexity of the unit of measurement. Results are discussed, taking into account the relevant literature.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing the EU Energy Efficiency Label for Appliances: Issues, Potential Improvements and Challenges

Ayala

Solà

2022

Energies

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“…Usually, the studies that use the income variable what they do is analyze the behaviors of households with low [14] or high income [15]. For the other cases, GDP is the variable used.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influence of Population Income on Energy Consumption and CO2 Emissions in Buildings of Cities

Zarco-Soto

Zarco-Periñán

2021

Sustainability

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More than half of the world’s population lives in cities. A large part of the emissions and energy consumption corresponds to buildings, both in the residential sector and in the service sector. This means that a large part of the measures taken by governments to reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions are focused on this sector. With this background, this paper studies energy consumption in city buildings and the CO2 emissions they produce. It only makes use of publicly available data. The analysis is made from the point of view of income per inhabitant, and the results are obtained per inhabitant and household. To facilitate the analysis of the results, an index has been defined. The main contributions of this work are to analyze energy consumption and emissions due to buildings, study them from the point of view of the income of their inhabitants, and consider cities individually. The proposed methodology has been applied to the case of Spain. A total of 145 Spanish cities that have more than 50,000 inhabitants have been studied. The results show that the higher the income, the higher the consumption and emissions. Electricity consumptions are almost inelastic, while those of thermal origin are greatly influenced by the level of income. Regarding CO2 emissions, the percentage of emissions of electrical origin with respect to total emissions is higher than that of thermal origin. In addition, the lower the income, the higher the percentage of emissions of electrical origin.

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“…In South Africa, available research tends to focus on household electricity use and its determinants and the effects of interventions projected at the national level. 14 Undoubtedly, these studies have advanced our understanding of electricity use behaviour but we note that more work is required. In particular, we argue that additional information can be obtained by focussing on the effectiveness of interventions at the household level.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Behavioural interventions yield electricity savings among high-income households in Johannesburg, South Africa

Williams

Thondhlana

Kua

2021

Energy & Environment

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The societal benefits of addressing wasteful electricity use practices through behavioural interventions are now well-established. Surprisingly, in South Africa, where the economy is highly dependent on fossil fuel (coal) for electricity generation, this subject remains little studied and understood. The residential sector is a major electricity consumer, and high-income households, in particular, use a substantial proportion of total electricity with serious adverse impacts on grid stability and the environment, which can disproportionately affect the poor. Using a field-based experiment, this study examines the impact of behavioural interventions on household electricity savings and the determinants of success among high-income households in Johannesburg, South Africa. Over the intervention period, households exposed to a combination of electricity-saving information, frequent reminders and feedback on monthly electricity-saving performance showed mean electricity savings of about 1.5%, ranging from 2% to 4% of electricity, while households in the control group showed increased electricity consumption by approximately 11%. Out of all the demographic and personal value factors considered, age, achievement and benevolence promoted electricity savings, while household size, number of rooms, baseline electricity consumption and security inhibited savings. The findings empirically validate the impact of behavioural interventions on, and the positive influence of, personal values in promoting participation in electricity-saving actions within households.

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Reported Behavioural Patterns of Electricity Use among Low-Income Households in Makhanda, South Africa

Cited by 12 publications

References 47 publications

Assessing the EU Energy Efficiency Label for Appliances: Issues, Potential Improvements and Challenges

Assessing the EU Energy Efficiency Label for Appliances: Issues, Potential Improvements and Challenges

Influence of Population Income on Energy Consumption and CO2 Emissions in Buildings of Cities

Behavioural interventions yield electricity savings among high-income households in Johannesburg, South Africa

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