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Get the knowledge: The impacts of household utilities
What does it take to deliver services such as water or refuse collections to our homes, and what are their impacts on people and the planet? And as the cost of living increases, how do they affect our bank balance?
Switch on the light, turn on the tap, put out the waste, check your social media. Most households in high-income countries rely heavily on these services – known collectively as utilities – for a modern standard of living.
We take these services for granted, but they come with an environmental price. For example:
- Power generation is a major source of greenhouse gases (GHG) which fuel the climate crisis and the extreme weather events many people around the world are now experiencing
- Overuse of domestic water supplies contributes to water scarcity in many regions
- Ecosystems globally have become loaded with plastic debris and other pollution from the inability of many countries to manage domestic waste properly
The systems behind power, water, waste and telecommunications are complex. While governments and businesses are attempting to tackle sustainability issues, progress seems painfully slow. Change in these behemoth industries is not easy because money has already been invested in infrastructure that supports the use of fossil fuels to power electricity generation or supply gas, and investment is often required to modernise water supplies and waste management, which no-one wants to pay for.
Challenges for consumers at large
The sheer size and continuous nature of demand for these services means the cumulative effects are huge. According to the International Energy Authority (IEA), the operations of buildings account for 30% of global final energy consumption and 26% of global energy-related emissions (read more about the way carbon contributes to climate change).
Data also shows steadily increasing demand from domestic appliances. North American consumers’ appliances used a fifth of the global total in 2020 (the region represents around 8% of global population). Figures for Europe and China are proportionate to their populations at 10% and 20% respectively. But demand from households in China and emerging economies is expected to grow quickly as people become more affluent, putting pressure on climate targets.
The big question is, are people in high-income countries willing to reduce their energy consumption, particularly as energy prices remain an ongoing source of concern? In the UK, for example, household energy bills increased by 54% in April 2022. As such, it’s clear that the impacts fall hardest on the poorest.
The UK Energy Saving Trust guidance on how to reduce energy usage includes:
- Improving heating efficiency through the equipment installed and sources of energy used.
- Switching to low or no-carbon fuels, controllers and storage.
- Reducing heat loss through insulation and glazing.
- Generating your own renewable energy, such as wind or solar.
Sources of energy
While the use of domestic appliances drives demand, how energy is generated determines environmental impacts like carbon emissions, water and resource use, as well as waste. Energy based on renewable sources, such as wind, solar and nuclear generates a fraction of the carbon compared to traditional fossil fuel-based energy generation, taking into account the full lifecycle from building facilities, running them, distributing the energy and eventually decommissioning them. So if you’re considering switching suppliers, it makes sense to choose one offering renewable energy, where possible.
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Comparing energy production Wind and solar power are expected to contribute most towards CO2 reduction efforts as the world strives to limit temperature rises to below 1.5C. Scientists, led by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, have assessed the broader impacts of different types of energy production in place by 2050 and found wind and solar the best, as they reduce most other environmental stressors including human health impacts, and land and resource use. The study includes all major power technologies, including carbon capture and sequestration. A World Economic Forum (WEF) study agrees, noting that renewable energy conserves natural resources, keeping carbon in the ground. WEF estimates that investment in renewables present a $650bn opportunity with returns greater than 10% by 2030, as well as creating new jobs. One study from Wood Mackenzie Power and Renewables also shows that renewable energy is projected to be cheaper than coal-based energy by 2026 in China.
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Nuclear power is an oft-touted fossil fuel alternative, thanks to its lower carbon footprint compared to coal, but it comes with other problems. For example, it was 11 years after the Fukushima disaster in Japan before the government lifted evacuation orders. Meanwhile, nuclear waste created in the energy production process must be stored underground (where it will remain radioactive for 100,000 years). Some 263,000 tonnes of spent fuel sits in interim storage facilities worldwide, the International Atomic Energy Agency estimates.
Water scarcity is also a consideration for all energy types, with the UN estimating that 90% of power production – namely from nuclear and fossil fuels – is water intensive. The IEA says that it is important to understand the relationship between energy and water as we transition from fossil fuels, as while technologies such as wind and solar require very little water, but other similarly ’green’ options such as biofuels, concentrating solar power and nuclear power can also have significant water demands.
Government policies
From an economic perspective the cost of renewables in some countries is coming down, and – relative to the escalating cost of oil and gas – becoming a financially attractive option. However, despite the global energy crisis, many governments continue to fudge aspirations to set and meet their climate targets by permitting or investing in new fossil fuel energy capacity.
Speaking at the New York Times Climate Forward conference in London in June 2022, Johan Rockströmdirector, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, said that the scientific community has made a mistake by communicating the climate crisis as an environmental issue that requires "sacrifices to fix". He said a new narrative was needed to highlight the need for zero carbon, resilient, sustainable energy systems that bring multiple benefits, such as avoiding conflict, displacement and migration, providing food security, as well as clean air and other health benefits.
Taking water for granted?
Households in many high income countries no longer see the provision of fresh water and the treatment of sewage as a luxury. According to the CDC, the average person in in the US uses around 700 litres of water a day for drinking, cooking, washing, flushing toilets and watering gardens. In nations in the global south, however, this figure is considerably lower. The average person in Malawi, for example, uses just 13 litres a day.
Several countries still provide water under set fee systems that take no account of actual usage. Such approaches do little to encourage people to be efficient with their water. But the provision of safe drinking water comes at a high price. Pumping, treating and distributing water uses energy and hazardous chemicals, like chlorine. Around 10% of water supply is used by households (the remainder is used for agriculture and industry) – but it is estimated between 20-40% of water is wasted on its way to the tap via leaks and poor infrastructure (learn more about global water challenges).
While most homes in higher income countries have flushing toilets, it is estimated 4.5 billion people in the world do not have access to clean sanitation, risking disease and environmental contamination. Overall, it is estimated that the sanitation sector contributes between 2-6% of methane emissions, and between 1-3% of nitrous oxide emissions, both of which are potent greenhouse gases.
The impact of our digital habits
Telecommunications utilities is still a relatively new service to homes, in both high and lower income countries. But as technology evolves, so does our understanding of its impacts on the environment. It is estimated that one email creates between 0.2-26g of CO2 equivalent emissions, for example, with estimates suggesting 333.2 billion emails are sent per day (check out eight ways to reduce your digital carbon footprint).
Taking action
One of the biggest challenges around utilities and their impacts is behavioural patterns. It is all too easy to flick a switch, take a long shower or throw things in the bin without considering the climate crisis, water scarcity, or waste pickers in low-income countries. So it comes down to awareness. If we all paid attention to our utilities consumption, and understood a little more about how choices can have positive impacts on people and planet, we could drive more sustainable energy, water, waste and telecommunications industries that work for and benefit everyone.
This article was originally published on 05/08/2022 but has been updated to reflect the latest research and developments in this area.
Check it out
For more information on these issues:
- The investor engagement initiative, Climate Action +100, has published a report on what electricity utility businesses are doing to achieve net zero emissions.
- For the UK market, Forbes Advisors’ rating of green energy suppliers in 2021.
- The UK’s Energy Saving Trust website provides information to reduce energy consumption and its impacts.
- IEA data on emissions from buildings.
- IEA information on energy consumption of household appliances and equipment ranging from refrigerators to mobile phones, plus an article on the carbon footprint of video streaming and its report on the relationship between energy and water.
- House of Commons data on rising energy bills in the UK.
- Nature Communications journal on the adverse side effects of energy decarbonisation technologies.
- Wood Mackenzie Power and Renewables outlook on energy prices in China.
- Stanford University report on tackling the environmental impacts of sewage treatment.
- CDC data on water use around the world.
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