Influence of Population Income on Energy Consumption for Heating and Its CO2 Emissions in Cities

Pedro J Zarco-Periñán,Fco Javier Zarco-Soto,Irene M Zarco-Soto,Rafael Sánchez-Durán

doi:10.3390/en14154531

Pedro J Zarco-Periñán, Fco Javier Zarco-Soto + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/en14154531

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Journal: Energies	Publication Date: Jul 27, 2021
Citations: 1	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: Universidad de Sevilla, Endesa (Spain)

Abstract

As a result of the increase in city populations, and the high energy consumption and emissions of buildings, cities in general, and buildings in particular, are the focus of attention for public organizations and utilities. Heating is among the largest consumers of energy in buildings. This study examined the influence of the income of inhabitants on the consumption of energy for heating and the CO2 emissions in city buildings. The study was carried out using equivalized disposable income as the basis for the analysis and considered the economies of scale of households. The results are shown per inhabitant and household, by independently considering each city. Furthermore, to more clearly identify the influence of the population income, the study was also carried out without considering the influence of the climate. The method was implemented in the case of Spain. For this purpose, Spanish cities with more than 50,000 inhabitants were analyzed. The results show that, both per inhabitant and per household, the higher the income of the inhabitants, the greater the consumption of energy for heating and the greater the emissions in the city. This research aimed to help energy utilities and policy makers make appropriate decisions, namely, planning for the development of facilities that do not produce greenhouse gases, and enacting laws to achieve sustainable economies, respectively. The overall aim is to achieve the objective of mitigating the impact of emissions and the scarcity of energy resources.

Highlights

In 2014, 54% of the world’s population lived in cities, and it is projected that by2050, that number will reach 67%
Between 60% and 80% of energy is consumed in cities where, in addition, CO2 emissions account for 75% of the total [2]
This study focused on the energy consumption related to heating in city buildings and the emissions they produce

Summary

Introduction

In 2014, 54% of the world’s population lived in cities, and it is projected that by2050, that number will reach 67%. Between 60% and 80% of energy is consumed in cities where, in addition, CO2 emissions account for 75% of the total [2] From this perspective, buildings are the most important energy consumers in cities, in both the residential sector and the tertiary sector (businesses and activities that provide services but do not produce goods, such as banks, stores, government buildings, etc.). Buildings are the most important energy consumers in cities, in both the residential sector and the tertiary sector (businesses and activities that provide services but do not produce goods, such as banks, stores, government buildings, etc.) These sectors are responsible for the consumption of 36% of energy and the production of 40%. These factors highlight the importance of city buildings for both policy makers and utilities, in terms of legislation for more efficient consumption of energy and lower production of emissions, and appropriate planning of facilities using renewable energy to mitigate the scarcity of energy resources, respectively

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