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Energy-efficient buildings conserve power in cold snap
By Erik Gielen |
January 11, 2010, Monday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
WITH awe I have read about the incredibly high amount of electricity used in Shanghai during the last cold snap and the potential problems surrounding it - like factories stopping their production and possible black-outs, leaving many people in the cold. ("Shanghai's cold snap has drain on power," published in Shanghai Daily on January 6)
High energy usage also has implications for our environment, especially due to coal-fired power plants.
Looking at the discussions that took place about this subject during the Climate Conference in Copenhagen last month, it made me wonder why a simple, easy and relatively cheap solution is overlooked: improving the energy efficiency of our buildings!
A lot of time was taken to discuss the transfer of knowledge from developed countries to developing countries to battle climate change. However, one of the easiest, fastest and cheapest ways to do that is already widely available, also in China.
By installing double or triple pane windows and decent insulation material you can easily save up to 40 percent of the energy now used to heat a building, as the heat stays inside instead of literally going out of the window (and walls).
This is also true in summer time, when so much energy is used to cool down buildings.
For the recent cold snap this would have meant that almost 8 million kilowatts could have been either used for powering factories, providing work and money for the workers, or could not have been produced at all, lowering costs for government and consumers alike - not to forget the impact on the environment.
Finally, a decently insulated house also improves the indoor climate dramatically.
High energy usage also has implications for our environment, especially due to coal-fired power plants.
Looking at the discussions that took place about this subject during the Climate Conference in Copenhagen last month, it made me wonder why a simple, easy and relatively cheap solution is overlooked: improving the energy efficiency of our buildings!
A lot of time was taken to discuss the transfer of knowledge from developed countries to developing countries to battle climate change. However, one of the easiest, fastest and cheapest ways to do that is already widely available, also in China.
By installing double or triple pane windows and decent insulation material you can easily save up to 40 percent of the energy now used to heat a building, as the heat stays inside instead of literally going out of the window (and walls).
This is also true in summer time, when so much energy is used to cool down buildings.
For the recent cold snap this would have meant that almost 8 million kilowatts could have been either used for powering factories, providing work and money for the workers, or could not have been produced at all, lowering costs for government and consumers alike - not to forget the impact on the environment.
Finally, a decently insulated house also improves the indoor climate dramatically.
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