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Energy Efficiency Trends in Canada, 1990 to 2009

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Chapter 3: Residential sector

Overview — Residential energy use and GHG emissions

In Canada, 80 percent of all residential energy use was for space and water heating in 2009.

In 2009, Canadians spent $26.8 billion on household energy needs. Total household energy use was 17 percent of all energy used (Figure 3.1), and total household GHG emissions were 15 percent of all secondary energy use-related GHGs emitted in Canada (Figure 3.2). Specifically, residential energy use was 1,422.3 PJ, emitting 67.9 Mt of GHGs.

Figure 3.1 – Energy use by sector, 2009

Figure 3.1 – Energy use by sector, 2009.

Figure 3.2 – GHG emissions by sector, 2009

Figure 3.2 – GHG emissions by sector, 2009.

Natural gas, electricity, wood, heating oil and propane were the sources of energy being used. Within a household, these forms of energy were used for a variety of activities, as seen in Figure 3.3. Because of Canada’s cold climate, 63 percent of Canada’s residential energy use was for space heating in 2009, while water heating accounted for 17 percent. Appliances were also major energy users in Canadian dwellings, followed by lighting and space cooling.

Figure 3.3 – Distribution of residential energy use by end-use, 2009

Figure 3.3 – Distribution of residential energy use by end-use, 2009.

Trends — Residential energy use and GHG emissions

Population growth and fewer people per household led to a 36 percent rise in the number of households, which contributed to an 11 percent increase in residential energy use from 1990 to 2009.

The 3.5 million households added in Canada since 1990 is more than Quebec’s total households.

Between 1990 and 2009, the population grew 22 percent (6.0 million people) and the number of households increased 36 percent (3.5 million). The rise in the number of households, combined with increased average living space and higher penetration rate of appliances, contributed to the increase of 11 percent, or 140.2 PJ, in residential energy use, from 1,282.1 PJ to 1,422.3 PJ. As homeowners gradually switched to cleaner energy sources, the associated GHG emissions decreased 0.8 percent, from 68.4 Mt to 67.9 Mt, during the period.

The mix of energy used in the residential sector changed slightly over the period. Specifically, natural gas and electricity became even more dominant while heating oil use declined (Figure 3.4). Natural gas and electricity together accounted for 87 percent of all residential energy use in 2009, compared with 78 percent in 1990, while heating oil saw its share decrease from 15 percent to 4 percent over the period. The increase in natural gas and electricity share largely reflected increased availability of natural gas and lower natural gas prices relative to oil. It was also in part the result of relatively higher efficiency ratings for gas and electric furnaces.

Figure 3.4 – Residential energy use by fuel type and number of households, 1990 and 2009

Figure 3.4 – Residential energy use by fuel type and number of households, 1990 and 2009.

Canadians have bigger homes with fewer people living in them.

The choices Canadians made with respect to their living space also contributed to an increase in energy use. Average living space in 2009 was 11 percent greater than that in 1990. Specifically, average occupied living space in 1990 was 116 square metres () compared with 129 of living space in 2009 (Figure 3.5). At the same time, the number of individuals per household fell to 2.5 in 2009 from 2.8 in 1990. This trend, coupled with population growth, has meant more dwellings built and therefore more energy consumed.

Since 1990, Canadians use more devices that consume energy. In addition, more Canadians choose to cool their homes during the summer months. These choices increased residential energy use. The impact of these changes and the choices made by Canadians are further discussed in the following section, where each end-use is examined.

Figure 3.5 – Residential energy indicators, 1990 and 2009

Figure 3.5 – Residential energy indicators, 1990 and 2009.

Trends — Residential space heating energy use

Despite a 24 percent decline in space heating energy intensity (GJ/), total space heating energy use increased 13 percent between 1990 and 2009.

The amount of energy used by the residential sector to heat each square metre of living space decreased significantly between 1990 and 2009. The decrease in space heating intensity from 0.66 gigajoules per square metre (GJ/) to 0.50 GJ/ (Figure 3.6) was mainly driven by energy efficiency gains, despite heating degreedays in 2009 being higher than in 1990.

Figure 3.6 – Space heating energy intensity and heating degree-day index, 1990–2009

Figure 3.6 – Space heating energy intensity and heating degree-day index, 1990–2009.

Energy efficiency gains were realized, to a large extent, by the replacement of less efficient systems with regulated medium- and high-efficiency systems. From 1990 to 2009, the proportion of medium- and high-efficiency gas furnaces installed in Canadian houses climbed from 10 percent to 86 percent of the gas heating system market. Although there were few medium-efficiency oil heating systems in 1990, almost all oil heating systems were medium-efficiency by 2009.

Although space heating intensity decreased 24 percent, this was not enough to compensate for the fact that the number of households increased 36 percent. Additionally, the average Canadian home was larger in 2009 than it was in 1990. Consequently, the energy required to heat all the dwellings in Canada increased 13 percent, from 792.3 PJ in 1990 to 893.2 PJ in 2009, which accounted for 63 percent of all residential energy use.

Trends — Residential water heating energy use

Less energy is required per household for hot water due to increased penetration of newer and!more efficient natural gas water heaters and a decline in household size.

More Canadians shifted from using oil-fired water heaters to those that use natural gas and that are, on average, more energy-efficient (Figure 3.7). In addition, current minimum energy performance standards mean that new water heaters use less energy than older models. As older stock is replaced by new stock, energy efficiency gains are realized. These changes, combined with a decrease in household size, resulted in a 26 percent decrease in the energy used per household for heating water (from 24.7 GJ per household in 1990 to 18.3 GJ per household in 2009).

Figure 3.7 – Water heating energy use by fuel type, 1990 and 2009

Figure 3.7 – Water heating energy use by fuel type, 1990 and 2009.

Although there was a decrease in per household energy used to heat water, the total number of households grew more quickly than energy efficiency improvements from new equipment. The result was an overall increase of 0.5 percent in residential water heating energy use, from 244.6 PJ to 245.8 PJ. In 2009, 17 percent of the residential energy demand was used for water heating.

Trends — Residential appliance energy use

The increased number of minor appliances offset the benefits of the energy efficiency gains of major appliances.

The number of major appliances operated in Canada between 1990 and 2009 increased 49 percent (Figure 3.8). However, the total amount of energy that households used to power major appliances decreased 16 percent over the same period due to energy efficiency improvements. In fact, the average unit energy use of all major household appliances decreased noticeably from 1990 to 2009.

Figure 3.8 – Residential energy use and appliance stock index by appliance type, 1990 and 2009

Figure 3.8 – Residential energy use and appliance stock index by appliance type, 1990 and 2009.

The largest percentage decrease was in the unit energy use of clothes washers (Figure 3.9), which in 2009 used 73 percent less energy than in 1990 (from 134 kilowatt hours per year [kWh/yr] to 37 kWh/yr).4 A new refrigerator in 1990 used an average of 956 kWh/yr versus 430 kWh/yr in 2009, a decrease of 55 percent. These improvements in efficiency were due mainly to the introduction of minimum efficiency standards in the 1990s.

Energy use for powering all household minor appliances more than doubled between 1990 and 2009. This increase of 46.5 PJ was equivalent to the energy required to provide lighting to all the Canadian homes in the mid-1980s.

Figure 3.9 – Unit energy consumption for new major electric appliances, 1990 and 2009

Figure 3.9 – Unit energy consumption for new major electric appliances, 1990 and 2009.

In contrast to trends for major appliances, energy use for smaller appliances such as televisions, VCRs, DVDs, stereo systems and personal computers more than doubled (+158 percent). This increase more than outweighed the energy use reduction from major appliances. One example of the rapid growth in minor appliances is the increased penetration of personal computers. In 1990, computers were present in less than one out of six households but by 2009 they were present in more than four out of five households in Canada. Furthermore, the rapid penetration of digital TVs, DVDs and digital cable boxes also contributed to the increase.

Trends — Space cooling energy use

More Canadians lived in bigger and air-conditioned homes.

The amount of occupied floor space with air conditioners rose to 757 million in 2009, from 267 million in 1990. The percentage of occupied floor space cooled rose from 23 percent in 1990 to 44 percent in 2009. As a result, even though the summer in 2009 was not as hot as in 1990, the energy required to cool Canadian homes rose 68 percent (Figure 3.10), from 10.4 PJ to 17.4 PJ, over the same period.

Figure 3.10 – Space cooling system stock and energy use, 1990–2009

Figure 3.10 – Space cooling system stock and energy use, 1990–2009.

The increase in energy used for space cooling would have been more profound if not for efficiency improvements associated with room and central air conditioners. Compared with 1990, the stock of room and central air conditioners in 2009 were 48 and 26 percent more efficient, respectively.

Trends — Lighting energy use

The market share of energy-efficient lighting alternatives increased significantly between 1990 and 2009.

Despite a drop in lighting energy use per household, the energy required to light all the households in Canada increased 18 percent, from 51.4 PJ to 60.6 PJ (Figure 3.11). This was entirely due to the 36 percent increase in the number of households, as the energy required to light each household in Canada decreased 10 percent, from 5.2 GJ to 4.7 GJ.

Figure 3.11 – Lighting energy use per household and total lighting energy use, 1990–2009

Figure 3.11 – Lighting energy use per household and total lighting energy use, 1990–2009.

Some of the decrease in lighting energy use per household can be associated with the increased use of compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs), also known as compact fluorescent light bulbs (Figure 3.12), which use less energy to produce a certain level of light. The use of CFLs was marginal in the residential lighting market before 2000, but CFLs represented around 24 percent of light bulbs used in 2009.

Figure 3.12 – Number of light bulbs per household by bulb type, 1990 and 2009

Figure 3.12 – Number of light bulbs per household by bulb type, 1990 and 2009.

Residential energy intensity and efficiency

Energy intensity

The average household has reduced its energy use by 18 percent since 1990.

In the residential sector, energy intensity is usually expressed as energy consumed per household. It can also be expressed as energy consumed per square metre of house area. Energy intensity decreased 18 percent, from 129.6 GJ per household in 1990 to 106.0 GJ in 2009 (Figure 3.13). This occurred despite the average household operating more appliances, its living space becoming larger and increasing its use of space cooling. Energy use per square metre decreased 25 percent, from 1.06 GJ to 0.79 GJ.

Figure 3.13 – Residential energy intensity per household and floor space, 1990–2009

Figure 3.13 – Residential energy intensity per household and floor space, 1990–2009.

Energy efficiency

Energy efficiency improvements resulted in energy savings of $8.9 billion in the residential sector in 2009.

Energy efficiency improvements in the residential sector resulted in significant savings between 1990 and 2009. These improvements include changes to the residential thermal envelope (insulation, windows, etc.) and changes to the efficiency of energy-consuming items in the home, such as furnaces, appliances, lighting and air conditioning.

Energy efficiency in the residential sector improved 37 percent from 1990 to 2009, allowing Canadians to save 470.6 PJ of energy (Figure 3.14) and $8.9 billion in energy costs in 2009.

Figure 3.14 – Residential energy use, with and without energy efficiency improvements, 1990–2009

Figure 3.14 – Residential energy use, with and without energy efficiency improvements, 1990–2009.

These energy efficiency savings translate into an average savings of $660 per Canadian household in 2009.

Figure 3.15 illustrates the influence that various factors had on the change in residential energy use between 1990 and 2009. These effects are as follows:

  • activity effect — As measured by combining a mix of households and floor space, energy use increased 38 percent (492.3 PJ), and GHG emissions increased by 23.5 Mt. Growth in activity was driven by a 48 percent increase in floor area and by a rise of 36 percent in the number of households.

  • structure effect — The increase in the relative share of single-family houses resulted in the sector using an additional 10.0 PJ of energy and emitting 0.5 Mt more GHGs.

  • weather effect — In 2009, the winter was colder and the summer was cooler than in 1990. The net result was an overall increase in energy demand of 33.0 PJ, and GHG emissions rose by 1.6 Mt.

  • service level effect — The increased penetration rate of appliances and the increased floor space cooled by space cooling units were responsible for 75.5 PJ of the increase in energy and a 3.6 Mt increase in GHGs.

  • energy efficiency effect — Improvements to the thermal envelope of houses and to the efficiency of residential appliances and space and water heating equipment led to an overall energy efficiency gain in the residential sector. This saved 470.6 PJ of energy and 22.4 Mt of GHG emissions.

Figure 3.15 – Impact of activity, structure, weather and energy efficiency on the change in residential energy use, 1990–2009

Figure 3.15 – Impact of activity, structure, weather and energy efficiency on the change in residential energy use, 1990–2009.

4 Excludes hot water requirements.

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