ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, November 9, 1996 TAG: 9611110011
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: A-6 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: LONDON
SOURCE: GILLY FILSNER BLOOMBERG BUSINESS NEWS
THE CHALLENGE is informing consumers of potential savings, such as turning out lights in unused rooms.
Those who don't recycle or try to save energy because they don't think their small effort could have an impact might consider the financial argument.
By calculating payback times for energy-saving investments and providing information to help cut fuel bills, environmental groups are achieving their aims without appealing to consumers' better natures.
The environmental lobby is considering ways to lead consumers down the green road, through ironing out tax anomalies and encouraging manufacturers and service providers to deliver better information to consumers.
``Our research shows they're not interested in the environment whatsoever,'' said Stephanie Moore, spokeswoman for the Energy Saving Trust, an organization that promotes energy efficiency. ``They're interested in the investment, how much they'll save and the value it might put on their house.''
Saving energy costs half as much as using it, according to calculations from the energy trust, which is jointly funded by the government and a levy on consumers through their electricity supplier.
A survey by the energy trust earlier this year found that money savings are enough to persuade 80 percent of people to save energy. Even simple measures like turning off lights in empty rooms, closing curtains against the cold after dark, and placing foil behind radiators against outside walls can save up to $328 million a year.
The challenge for the green lobby is to persuade consumers the investment is worthwhile.
``Energy efficiency is not fighting on a level playing field,'' said Linda Taylor, deputy director of the Association for the Conservation of Energy, which is funded by companies that make energy-saving products.
Along with environmental groups such as Friends of the Earth, the energy-saving industry would like to see the tax treatment of energy use and energy saving at least equalized; legislation to implement this was defeated by one vote.
Consumers used to accounting for fuel economy when buying a car have trouble extending that notion to other purchases. Often, that's because the information is not easily available. New refrigerators and freezers are rated according to how much energy they use, but not in terms of kilowatt hours in the way that miles per gallon is calculated for cars. That can make it difficult for a buyer to decide whether the extra cost is worthwhile.
Unfortunately, even when information on energy consumption is provided by a manufacturer, there are no controls over its accuracy. Tests of products such as refrigerator-freezers by the Consumers' Association, the nonprofit campaigning organization and publisher of ``Which?'' magazine, found that in a majority of cases consumption was higher than the claims.
``The information needs to be clear and trustworthy, and the information must therefore be policed by an independent third party to ensure that it is correct at the point of sale,'' said a Consumers' Association spokesman.
LENGTH: Medium: 63 linesby CNB