Isramart : Energy bills cut with carbon calculator, Oxford University study reveals

Isramart news:
Householders can reduce energy bills by 15 percent if they can track how much resource they are consuming, a unique study by Oxford University and Ebico, the country’s only not-for-profit energy company, has found.

Researchers at Oxford University’s Environmental Change Institute (ECI) have discovered that entering meter readings on a weekly basis to a web-based CO2 emissions calculator called imeasure makes people more aware of the energy they use.

The study found they are then more likely to take energy-saving measures such as turning off lights and not leaving electrical appliances in standby modes.

The university’s partnership with Ebico has tracked the energy habits of more than 1,500 people over the past 18 months.

Ebico Managing Director Phil Levermore believes imeasure may be the answer to controlling household energy consumption before the full roll-out of smart meters can be achieved.

“This ongoing study proves that people are willing to make the small changes necessary to reduce their household CO2 emissions,” he said. “They just need to have a better understanding of how much energy they are using on a weekly basis to make the critical issue of climate change immediately relevant to their lives.”

imeasure users upload their electricity and gas meter readings on a weekly basis. The online calculator then provides an immediate calculation of a household’s carbon dioxide output and money spent on energy.

The results can then be compared to other imeasure users to enable comparisons to be made with colleagues, neighbours and others with similar size homes and families. This allows people to work out whether they are a high, low or typical user of energy.

Researchers at the ECI also use the tool to provide a set of data on the UK’s energy usage habits, as energy companies are usually less inclined to publish their own data. The imeasure data will help researchers investigating how the UK can meet its carbon reduction commitments.