Households throughout the country are willing to spend an average of $ 7,950 in advance to make their houses greener and cheaper to run, has established a report.
But 40 percent of the people surveyed will probably not switch from gas equipment and install more sustainable technologies, because they do not understand the impact they will have on lowering the energy consumption of households.
The Proptrack -Voersprong Australian Home Energy Report, commissioned by Origin Energy and compiled by REA Group, investigated attitudes about transferring households away from gas equipment and installing technologies, including solar and battery systems.
More than half (56 percent) of the 4,800 people investigated in January intended to make their houses more energy efficient for the next five years.
Households budgeted $ 7,850 in metropolitan areas and $ 8,400 in the regions for such upgrades.
REA Group Senior economist Eleanor Creagh said that the upgrades can lead to more than $ 80 billion being spent by homeowners on energy improvements.
“It is encouraging to see that a large number of Australians have been motivated to make these changes,” she said.
“Certainly in terms of achieving our net zero goals and electrification in the long term, a little more needs to be done in education, stimuli and policy.“
Eleanor Creagh says that better training is needed for households to fully benefit from subsidies. ((Liver: Eleanor Creagh))
The answers identified challenges that can delay the transition from households to sustainable energy technologies.
Two out of five respondents did not know how to improve the energy efficiency of their homes, with “tenants and younger Australians who are confronted with the greatest knowledge bullets”.
There was little awareness of the Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme (Nather) – the government’s system for assessing the energy efficiency of new houses – because 71 percent of people said they had no understanding of it.
“There is also a lot of confusion about available government discounts or technologies,” said Mrs. Creagh.
“Many people see energy-efficient upgrades as costs and do not recognize the long-term savings.
“Without better education, many households will continue to be locked up from those benefits.”
Gas switch Momentum misses
Replacing gas hob plates, hot water systems, stoves and other devices through electrical alternatives can lead to lower electricity accounts and reduce emissions on electricity generated by renewable energy sources.
Upgrading one of the 8 million houses built before the energy standards were introduced more than two decades ago, could lead to a saving of $ 1,033 per year, according to figures from the Climate Council of Australia.
However, the REA Group and Origin Report claims that the previous costs for “electrification” prevent the trend speed from taking up.
40 percent of people are talking about converting their property in the future into devices that are only electric, which is 1 percent lower than a year earlier.
28 percent of people excluded the change and 32 percent were on the fence.
Of the more than 4,800 people investigated, 6 percent had dumped gas equipment to become completely electric.
“It will probably be a pretty slow -moving journey,” said Mrs. Creagh.
“Better and more targeted educational and industrial support can certainly help people overcome knowledge lacunes, which are barriers to make energy -efficient upgrades in the house.”
The report showed that 68 percent of people were motivated to upgrade the energy efficiency of their houses because it often resulted in lower electricity accounts, while 55 percent recognized the environmental benefits.
Electricity is increasingly being generated from renewable sources, including solar energy and wind farms in Australia, and thus replacing gas equipment with electric alternatives results in fewer fossil fuels that are burned.
The Provider Origy Energy utility is a generator and retailer of energy from coal-fired power and gas.
But the shift to renewable energy sources is also underway within the industry, with origin to close its erupting power plant of coal and to increase its investment in renewable technologies, including wind farms and battery projects.
The Power Station exercise will continue to generate electricity until the planned closure in 2027. ((Delivered: Shuttershock: Harley Kingston))
What about Labor’s Solar Battery Subsidy?
The survey data was collected in January, before the federal Labor government was re-elected, and before the campaign conducted 30 percent subsidies for solar battery costs for households, small businesses and community facilities.
Mrs Creagh said that the policy would help to tackle some of the challenges that are emphasized by the survey data.
“The costs in advance are a really important obstacle. 45 percent of the respondents were the biggest deterrent,”
she said.
“Probably make the lower costs in combination with those current savings of savings [installing a solar battery] More attractive option for households. “
The government estimates that the $ 2.3 billion program by 2030 will add more than 1 million new batteries.
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Saving dollars by changing habits
70 percent of the people surveyed had changed their habits to reduce their energy consumption in the past year, mainly motivated by the high costs of living.
The most common measures were the lowering of lights (52 percent) and devices (42 percent).
Age clearly defined that took energy -saving habits, the report thought.
People older than 65 have most likely changed their habits, but also had “the financial capacity to finance upgrades”.
In the meantime, 41 percent of people under the age of 35 were willing to reduce their energy consumption – 6 percent more than the average.
The respondents of the survey mentioned the costs of living as an important motivator for reducing energy consumption. ((Monkey: David Mariuz))
Tenants: Climate anxiety but no control
The report concluded: “Tenants, younger Australians and households with a lower income represent the biggest challenges” if it concerned reducing both their household energy bills and CO2 footprint.
“The reactions of the survey really showed that younger Australians are confronted with higher levels of climate anxiety, and they make sure to make these changes,” said Mrs. Creagh.
“But in many ways they cannot do that because a larger proportion of them are tenants, and the feeling that they have no control over the application of those energy-efficient changes in the house.”
Tenants who want to act can install smart plugs, install LED lights and talk to their landlords about upgrades, according to the report.
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