Household energy insecurity (also known as energy insecurity, as opposed to national energy security) refers to a household's inability to meet its energy needs. Energy insecurity is a broad framework that includes energy burden (also referred to as fuel poverty, a household's inability to afford energy costs) as one of several factors in a household's ability to meet energy needs. Household energy insecurity is influenced by both internal and external factors such as energy cost, household income, housing conditions, and personal behavior.[1] The relevance of these factors may vary by geographic region, such as country or community, and the level of development of energy infrastructure.

Contributing factors

Relative energy cost

The cost of energy relative to household income impacts affordability of energy. Households are generally defined as energy burdened if energy costs exceed 10% of gross household income.[1] In areas with more infrastructure and resources, households may face barriers to meeting energy needs due to the cost of purchasing, repairing, or maintaining equipment such as air conditioners or heating units as well as costs from running the equipment. In areas with fewer infrastructure and resources, relative energy cost may impact type of fuel used, such as cheaper less efficient and more polluting fuels being used over more efficient and less polluting but costly fuels.[2]

Housing conditions

Housing conditions may impact energy insecurity through household energy efficiency. Energy insecure households are more likely to report poor insulation or drafts in their home such as from windows or doors,[3] which may be more common in older or poorly maintained housing. Poorly insulated homes may have higher energy costs. Household energy efficiency improvements have also been associated with small but significant improvements in health.[4]

Personal behavior

Concerns about energy cost may influence energy-related behaviors at the household and individual levels. People might try to reduce energy bills by reducing usage of energy systems by keeping their homes at temperatures that might either be too hot or cold. When faced with high energy costs, households might also sacrifice basic necessities like healthy food (referred to as "heat-or-eat").[5][6]

Energy insecurity and climate change

More research is needed into how household energy use and needs are related to climate change.[1] Improving household energy efficiency could co-benefit climate change mitigation by reducing household energy demand and usage, therefore reducing fossil fuel demand and emissions, while also reducing the health impacts of exposure to extreme temperatures that are more likely with climate change as well as impacts of household air pollution.

Regional Analysis

Energy insecurity is a global problem with contributing factors that may vary in different communities and countries.[1]

United States

The United States Energy Information Administration Residential Energy Consumption Survey (RECS) considers households to be energy insecure if they:

"have received a disconnection notice, have reduced or forgone basic necessities to pay energy bills, kept their houses at unsafe temperatures because of energy cost concerns, or been unable to repair heating or cooling equipment because of cost."[3]

In the United States, low-income households spend an average of over 8% of gross income on energy costs and household below the federal poverty line spend over 16% of gross income, based on 2016 American Community Survey estimates of household energy consumption.[7] In 2020, energy insecure households in the United States paid more for energy on average and per square foot than households not considered to be energy insecure.[3]

Local efforts

  • Maricopa County in Arizona established an Energy Insecurity workgroup in 2020.[8]
  • New York State has a Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP).[9] New York City developed a Get Cool program in 2020 that installed free air conditioning units for tens of thousands of low-income older adults. The city also provided millions of dollars in aid to hundreds of thousands of families to help pay for summer 2020 energy costs during the COVID-19 pandemic.[10]

India

Households in India may face barriers to energy access due to a lack of available and affordable clean sources of energy.[2] Costs for cooking and lighting can reach upwards of 20% of non-food expenditures in Indian households.[2] Energy sources used may differ between rural versus urban communities. Cooking and heating with biomass fuels such as wood or dung is declining but is still fairly prevalent, contributing to household air pollution and is associated with negative health effects.[11]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Jessel, Sonal; Sawyer, Samantha; Hernández, Diana (2019-12-12). "Energy, Poverty, and Health in Climate Change: A Comprehensive Review of an Emerging Literature". Frontiers in Public Health. 7: 357. doi:10.3389/fpubh.2019.00357. ISSN 2296-2565. PMC 6920209. PMID 31921733.
  2. 1 2 3 Jain, Garima (June 2010). "Energy security issues at household level in India". Energy Policy. 38 (6): 2835–2845. doi:10.1016/j.enpol.2010.01.016.
  3. 1 2 3 "U.S. energy insecure households were billed more for energy than other households". www.eia.gov. Retrieved 2023-06-01.
  4. ↑ Maidment, Christopher D.; Jones, Christopher R.; Webb, Thomas L.; Hathway, E. Abigail; Gilbertson, Jan M. (February 2014). "The impact of household energy efficiency measures on health: A meta-analysis". Energy Policy. 65: 583–593. doi:10.1016/j.enpol.2013.10.054.
  5. ↑ Burlinson, Andrew; Davillas, Apostolos; Law, Cherry (December 2022). "Pay (for it) as you go: Prepaid energy meters and the heat-or-eat dilemma". Social Science & Medicine. 315: 115498. doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2022.115498. PMID 36371931. S2CID 253282241.
  6. ↑ Bhattacharya, Jayanta; DeLeire, Thomas; Haider, Steven; Currie, Janet (July 2003). "Heat or Eat? Cold-Weather Shocks and Nutrition in Poor American Families". American Journal of Public Health. 93 (7): 1149–1154. doi:10.2105/AJPH.93.7.1149. ISSN 0090-0036. PMC 1447925. PMID 12835201.
  7. ↑ "Low-Income Community Energy Solutions". Energy.gov. Retrieved 2023-05-18.
  8. ↑ "Addressing Energy Insecurity Through Cross-Sector Collaboration | Maricopa County, AZ". www.maricopa.gov. Retrieved 2023-06-08.
  9. ↑ Assistance, New York State Office of Temporary and Disability. "Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP)". New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance. Retrieved 2023-06-08.
  10. ↑ "Get Cool NYC: Mayor de Blasio Updates New Yorkers on COVID-19 Summer Heat Plan". The official website of the City of New York. 2020-06-12. Retrieved 2023-06-08.
  11. ↑ "Energy in India today – India Energy Outlook 2021 – Analysis". IEA. Retrieved 2023-06-08.
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