Energy Efficiency Day focusses on the many advantages of adopting efficient measures and behaviours that enable you to save money, reduce pollution, and create jobs.
Energy efficiency means minimising the energy inputs needed to provide a desired energy service (i.e., using less electricity to power an office building). Energy efficiency decreases the financial costs of energy as well as other negative impacts associated with energy production and use.
Energy efficient technologies include equipment and materials designed to provide energy services with lower energy inputs compared to the status quo. Examples of energy efficient technologies are electric lamps that produce the same light at lower wattage, refrigerators that cycle less often, fuel efficient cars, and heating systems that use less fuel than “baseline” technologies.
Furthermore, energy efficient technologies compete with conventional technologies and are selected by users who wish to reduce energy consumption to lower energy costs, which in turn will benefit the environment and contribute to energy security. Often these options are more expensive than conventional technologies, but provide a net positive financial return over time. Often, users do not select energy efficient technologies despite a favourable return on investment, due to a variety of market failures, including lack of information and financing.
Benefits of Energy Efficiency
- Energy savings.
- Energy security.
- Energy prices.
- Energy access.
- Health and wellbeing.
- Air Quality.
- Emissions savings.
- Household savings.
Using less energy enables us to stretch the electricity produced from emission-free sources, such as wind and solar, to keep homes comfortable and businesses operating.
By 2030, the implementation of energy efficiency standards in South Africa aim to reduce CO2 emissions by 6.8 million tons. The country will also save about 10 billion litres of water per year by 2030, which would help alleviate the stress on South Africa’s water supplies from recurring droughts.
Energy Efficiency Day Poster (936 KB)
