By: Alex Palmer<\/p>\n
Concerns about energy costs and the environment are driving consumer behavior as they choose between a growing selection of green energy initiatives, according to new research from Nielsen Claritas. \u201cEnergy Trends: Highlights on Consumer Energy Usage,\u201d which draws on the responses of more than 32,000 respondents about their energy use, found that while some consumers are adopting green habits, many have not been as quick to jump onboard.<\/p>\n
Currently, only 3 percent of households participate in U.S. green pricing programs such as Wisconsin\u2019s Energy for Tomorrow program and San Antonio\u2019s Windtricity. The level of participation varies widely by region. The west (consisting of California, Oregon and Washington) has embraced green energy programs far more than any other region, comprising 24 percent of all participation. This is due largely to the fact that California has had green pricing programs in place for many years.<\/p>\n
Other green regions consist of the mid-Atlantic (including New York) and west south central (including Texas) which each make up 15 percent of total participation. The south Atlantic (including Florida) comprised 14 percent of the participation.<\/p>\n
Saving money is the primary motivation for consumers looking to save energy. Eighty percent of respondents said that cutting costs and saving money was their main reason for energy conservation. \u201cFight global warming\u201d and \u201csave the earth\u201d tied for a distant second with 9 percent each.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe recession is a part of it, but I don\u2019t think it would reverse if we weren\u2019t in a recession time. They\u2019re still going to want to cut costs,\u201d said John Thorn, director of primary research for Nielsen Claritas.<\/p>\n
Green pricing programs participation was greatest among the higher educated and those making over $50,000. But a higher proportion of those making between $50,000-$100,000 (34 percent) participated compared to those making over $100,000 (30 percent).<\/p>\n
Participants also skewed younger, with 40 percent falling between the ages of 18-34 and 39 percent in the 35-54 year age range. Those above 55 make up 20 percent of those taking part in green programs.<\/p>\n
While there are a number of ways that renewable energy can be produced, solar power was the most highly preferred by respondents (37 percent). Wind power was a distant second at 16 percent, followed by nuclear (6 percent), geothermal (5 percent) and hydroelectric (4 percent). Thirty-two percent of respondents had no preference.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought wind was going to be number one\u2014it\u2019s gotten more press and a lot of talk about it,\u201d said Thorn. \u201cI think solar power was selected because people think it has the lowest impact on the environment\u2014where now or in the future you can put it on your roof or the top of your car and it has no downside to the environment.\u201d<\/p>\n
Plug-in hybrids may help push consumers way from their oil-centricity. While only 3 percent of households say they play on buying a plug-in hybrid, an additional 24 percent said they would purchase once the technology becomes more widely used.<\/p>\n
Fifty-eight percent of respondents said they would wait until their current vehicle needs to be replaced before running out to purchase a plug-in. Still, there is a core group that remains pro-gas-guzzler. Fifteen percent of those polled said that they would keep buying gas cars until they are no longer available.<\/p>\n
While consumers are learning more about green energy options, they are still in the dark about smart grids. These grids use digital technology to monitor and encourage a reduction in electricity usage, especially during peak usage times. While this form of energy management is receiving attention both on the local and national level, 80 percent of respondents say they have never heard of smart grids. Additionally, a full 97 percent of Americans say that their local utility has not shared the benefits of smart grids with them.<\/p>\n
This lack of knowledge is likely because smart grids are still more theory than reality. \u201cSmart grids are kind of in their infancy right now,\u201d said Thorn. Denver is going to be the first to go on board with this citywide, however at many other cities it is still in the planning stage. \u201cA lot of utilities aren\u2019t talking about it that much because they\u2019re still trying to figure out \u2018how is this going to work, what is this going to cost us, how are we going to roll it out?\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Concerns about energy costs and the environment are driving consumer behavior as they choose between a growing selection of green energy initiatives, according to new research from Nielsen Claritas. \u201cEnergy Trends: Highlights on Consumer Energy Usage,\u201d which draws on the responses of more than 32,000 respondents about their energy use, found that while some consumers are adopting green habits, many have not been as quick to jump onboard.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1329,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21782],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-59","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-development"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n