More Canadians limit water and energy usage
September 25, 2008 by Editor
Filed under Water Saving Solutions
OTTAWA - Canadians are saving water both coming and going, from top to bottom, and from east to west.
The proportion of Canadian households using reduced-volume toilets more than doubled to 37 per cent from 15 per cent between 1994 and 2006, while the percentage with a low-flow shower head rose to 57 per cent from 44 per cent, according to one of two environmental reports Thursday from Statistics Canada.
“Households in Eastern Canada were more likely to use low-flow shower heads while those in Ontario and the West were more likely to use reduced-volume toilets,” it said, adding, however that Ontario led the way in the use of both.
Meanwhile, more Canadian households are also turning to programmable thermostats to cut back on their energy use, according to the other analysis.
In 2006, 40 per cent of households with a thermostat had a programmable one, up from just 16 per cent in 1994, it said. Of those with a programmed thermostat, 68 per cent were programmed during the heating season to lower the temperature while they slept while only 46 per cent of households with an unprogrammed or non-programmable thermostat turned down the heat overnight.
Programmable thermostats, though they’ve been in existence for about 100 years, have only become popular over the past decade, Gordon Dewis, author of the report, Thermostat Use in Canadian Homes, noted in an interview.
While rising energy costs are clearly a factor behind some of the heat and water conservation efforts of Canadians, the report suggests saving money isn’t the only consideration.
“Among households with thermostats, the likelihood that the temperature was lowered when the household members were asleep increased as the total annual income increased,” observed the report on thermostat use.
“Higher income, home ownership and living in a single-detached dwelling were . . . associated with greater use of water-saving fixtures,” echoed another report.
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Source: Canada.com
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Its amazing how much water and electricity can be saved just by upgrading appliances and plumbing. Replacing old furnaces and air conditioners can cut your enery bill to 1/2. My most recent energy bill is now half of what it was before my heating and cooling was replaced this spring.