Collaborative Research: Energy Efficiency and Energy Justice: Understanding Distributional Impacts of Energy Efficiency and Conservation Programs and the Underlying Mechanisms

Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh PA

Investigators

Abstract

The adoption of energy efficiency technologies and conservation behaviors has the potential to significantly reduce energy demand and improve people's physical and financial well-being. This is particularly important for households facing energy poverty, who may forgo basic needs or engage in risky behaviors to meet their energy needs. U.S. electric utilities currently offer over 900 energy efficiency and conservation programs that aim to reduce household energy consumption and improve living conditions. These programs either provide information to help individuals change their energy consumption habits or offer financial incentives such as rebates and loans to lower the costs of adopting energy-efficient technologies. There is mixed evidence, however, regarding the cost-effectiveness of these programs, as their impacts depend on factors including income levels, rebound effects, and energy consumption behaviors. Unfortunately, many energy efficiency and conservation programs are not effectively reaching disadvantaged communities, and the equity of their impacts is under-studied. There is a need to investigate how these programs can effectively change energy consumption behavior and address instances of energy poverty in households. This project examines the heterogeneous impacts of multiple energy efficiency and conservation programs and the underlying mechanisms that contribute to inequitable program impacts. This project has three parts: 1) evaluating the heterogeneous impacts of four different energy efficiency and conservation programs using quasi-experimental designs, 2) examining how the heterogeneous impacts are related to multi-dimensional energy poverty, and 3) modeling energy behaviors to uncover the mechanisms behind inequitable program impacts. The data include actual consumption information provided by a Tallahassee energy provider as well as survey and experimental results. This project not only provides a fundamental scientific contribution to uncovering the distributional impacts of energy programs and their underlying mechanisms, but also has direct societal benefits by helping develop more effective and better-targeted programs to improve consumers’ financial and physical well-being, particularly in disadvantaged communities. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.