Promoting energy efficiency at household level: a literature review

The household sector is one of the most energy-intensive sectors in Europe, and thus a focal point for reducing greenhouse gas emissions associated with energy consumption. Energy efficiency is considered a key measure to reduce household energy consumption, but several factors could lead to an underinvestment in energy efficiency. This is the so-called energy efficiency gap or paradox. The factors in question are grouped under market failures (including informational failures), behavioural failures and other factors. Various policies can be used to address these failures and promote the adoption of energy-efficient technologies, including energy standards and codes, economic incentives and information instruments. This paper reviews the empirical evidence to date on energy efficiency policies and discusses their effectiveness. On the one hand, command and control instruments seem to be effective policies, but they have to overcome several barriers. In the case of price instruments, subsidies and taxes do not seem to be effective while rebates present mixed results as they sometimes are effective and in other cases, they could present significant shortcomings. Finally, the effectiveness of informational policies is not always ensured as they depend on the country, sector and product category. Information feedback tools also seem to be effective as they work as a constant reminder of energy-efficient behaviour. Some limitations of energy efficiency policies are also identified, such as the difficulties of implementing codes and standards given that a minimum level need to be achieved, differences in the effectiveness of rebate programmes and non-conclusive results in regard to the effectiveness of monetary energy efficiency labels. © 2020, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V. part of Springer Nature.This study was conducted as part of the CONSumer Energy Efficiency Decision making (CONSEED) project, an EU-funded H2020 research project under grant agreement number 723741. This research is also supported by the Spanish State Research Agency through María de Maeztu Excellence Unit accreditation 2018-2022 (Ref. MDM-2017-0714). The project leading to these results has received funding from ‘la Caixa’ Foundation under the project SR0435 led by Ibon Galarraga. Amaya de Ayala also acknowledges the support of Fundación Ramon Areces under XVIII Concurso Nacional para la Adjudicación de Ayudas a la Investigación en Ciencias Sociales. Marta Escapa is grateful for financial support from the University of the Basque Country (Grant GIU18/136) and from the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities (Grant RTI2018-093352-B-I00)

Consumers’ preferences regarding energy efficiency: a qualitative analysis based on the household and services sectors in Spain

Informational failures frequently lead consumers to make non-optimal energy-efficient purchasing decisions. Energy efficiency labels seek to influence consumer behaviour at the point of sale by reducing informational failures regarding energy efficiency. However, several informational and behavioural factors contribute to the energy efficiency gap and could render label-oriented policies useless. The purchasing decision model of Allcott and Greenstone (The Journal of Economic Perspectives, 26, 3 28, 2012) is used here to explore the different factors that influence purchasing decisions and understand (i) the importance of energy consumption compared to other attributes; (ii) how consumers weight energy savings and (iii) what other benefits and costs influence the purchase of energy-efficient goods. The analysis reported here is based on qualitative research methods and is conducted in the household and service sectors (the accommodation sector and private service companies), for appliances, heating and cooling systems and cars in Spain. Results show that (i) there is still an informational gap regarding energy labels and (ii) bounded rationality and end-user behaviour are important limiting factors for the purchase of energy-efficient goods in Spain. © 2020, The Author(s).This work was undertaken as a part of the CONSumer Energy Efficiency Decision making (CONSEED) project, an EU-funded H2020 research project under grant agreement number 723741. This research is also supported by the Spanish State Research Agency through María de Maeztu Excellence Unit accreditation 2018-2022 (Ref. MDM-2017-0714). Amaia de Ayala would like to thank the financial support of Fundación Ramón Areces under the project entitled “La toma de decisiones de los hogares en eficiencia energética: determinantes y diseño de políticas”

Assessment of sustainable land management practices in Mediterranean rural regions

Sustainable land management practices can be suitable vehicles to simultaneously address the causes and consequences of land degradation, desertification, and climate change in land managed systems. Here, we assess the potential of a variety of sustainable land management practices that, beyond addressing specific and local issues, assist in tackling Mediterranean Basin-wide land-use challenges. With this work, we aim to highlight those options that simultaneously promote local and regional Basin-wide adaptation. To do that, we developed a novel multi-objective assessment that evaluates the effectiveness of 104 practices adopted within the Mediterranean Basin and documented in the World Overview of Conservation Approaches and Technologies global database. Results indicate that agroforestry and green covers in perennial woody crops can promote multiple ecosystem services while addressing climate change adaptation. We further argue that these two practices together with reforestation, assist in regulating the hydrological cycle of the Basin and in maintaining its multifunctional landscape. Lastly, we reflect on potential biophysical and socio-economic barriers and opportunities associated with the implementation of the three practices. Our approach provides a Basin-wide integrated view that facilitates the coordination of sustainable management strategies across the Mediterranean region. © 2020 Elsevier LtdThe authors would like to thank two anonymous reviewers whose comments helped improve this work. This research is supported by the Basque Government through the BERC 2018–2021 program and by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness MINECO through BC3 María de Maeztu excellence accreditation MDM 2017–0714. M. Almagro acknowledges financial support from the Juan de la Cierva Program (IJCI-2015-23500)

Effectiveness of monetary information in promoting the purchase of energy-efficient appliances: Evidence from a field experiment in Spain

The effectiveness of energy labels is crucial in nudging the adoption of energy-efficient products. Here we analyse how providing monetary information on the cost of energy affects the purchases of energy-efficient appliances. To that end, a field experiment was carried out at a major Spanish retailer. The appliances under study were washing-machines, fridges, dishwashers and tumble-driers. Monetary information was provided in two different ways: (i) directly by sales staff; and (ii) directly by sales staff and via a supplementary label. We find that providing monetary information is not always effective to increase the purchases of more energy-efficient appliances. Moreover, the effectiveness is different depending on both the appliance and the specific way in which information is provided. The monetary information provided only by sales staff is effective in promoting purchases of A++ washing-machines, fridges and dishwashers but no effect is found for tumble-driers. Monetary information given out by sales staff together with the supplementary label is effective in increasing purchases of A++ washing-machines and dishwashers and A+++ tumble-driers, but no effect is found for fridges. Prior to the experiment, a rebate programme for energy-efficient appliances was in place for a few months in some regions. We find that this rebate programme had an impact on purchases of those types of appliances even after it ended. This “memory effect” should be considered when analysing the effectiveness of such rebate programmes. © 2022This study was conducted with the collaboration of El Corte Inglés as part of the CONSumer Energy Efficiency Decision making (CONSEED) project, an EU-funded H2020 research project under grant agreement number 723741. This research is also supported by the Spanish State Research Agency through María de Maeztu Excellence Unit accreditation 2018-2022 (Ref. MDM-2017-0714 ) and by the Basque Government (Spain) through the BERC 2018-2021 programme. Authors are also grateful for financial support from the University of the Basque Country (Grant GIU18/136 ), Basque Government ( IT1777-22 ) and from the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities (Grant RTI2018-093352-B-I00 )