ENERGY USAGE IN THE HOME
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In Europe every year 8 billion euros is spent on buying electrical appliances and 14 billion euros on the electricity to run them. Since the start of energy labelling in 1994, some 6 billion euros have been saved through manufacture and purchase of energy efficient appliances. Similar sums are likely to be saved in future years if everyone makes an effort to buy a energy efficient models when buying a new appliance. Saving electricity not only saves money and energy resources but also the environment. Generating electricity results in production of greenhouse gases (principally carbon dioxide, amongst other pollutants) unless the electricity is generated by renewable energy sources. These gases lead to an increase in the earth's temperature so reducing energy consumption will also reduce environmental damage and help develop a more sustainable lifestyle. Unfortunately as we are not usually aware of how much energy we use in our homes nor how much energy we can save. The average family consumes more than 3000 kWh/year costing more than 400 euros and resulting in excess of 1.5 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year. When this number is multiplied by the 150 million households in the EU, the total is amounts to 225 million tonnes of carbon dioxide per year which is a very significant percentage of the EU's Kyoto target! If each person made a contribution toward saving energy in the home, we can make a difference and the information on this web site will help you. If you only can spare a few minutes, look at the section where energy is used in your home and then at the hints for using less energy. If you have more time, consider the electricity consumption in your home as set out in your electricity bill. Then evaluate your consumption by undertaking a survey of your energy usage of appliances and completing a table which will aggregate the weekly consumption per appliance. You can compare your calculated consumption with what you actually pay. Finally there is a section which enables you to select an energy efficient appliances which meets your needs.
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