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How many light bulbs does it take to change a house?
Changing one light bulb from a 100W incandescent to a 20W compact fluorescent will save 6.5 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions over fifty years2.
This is larger than the greenhouse gas emissions associated with the embodied energy of the bricks in a standard brick veneer house. |
ONE!
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Embodied Energy and Life Cycle Analysis:
Embodied energy is a measure of the amount of energy associated with the manufacture of a product. The true life-cycle impact of a material is not accurately measured by its embodied energy alone. The embodied energy inherent in bricks should be considered as an investment that can lead to long term environmental benefits through:
- Reducing the need for artificial heating and cooling when used in combination with passive design principles
- Having a long life and being durable, reducing the need to reinvest in embodied energy
- And being colourfast and virtually maintenance free, reducing ongoing energy tolls
Greenhouse Gas Emission Comparison:
Australian research into a typical project home in Sydney1 has found that over the lifecycle the “utilisation energy had the greatest environmental impact” and was found to account for “more than 90% of energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions”. It is important to recognise what a large impact our everyday actions have. The table below provides a comparison of the greenhouse gas emissions associated with various activities.
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Source2 |
Greenhouse Gas Emissions (CO2-e) |
| Embodied energy of bricks in an average Australian brick veneer (8000 bricks)1 |
5.1 tonnes |
| Embodied energy of bricks in an average West Australian cavity brick (22000 bricks)1 |
14.1 tonnes |
| Average Australian household’s emissions each year3 |
8 tonnes |
| Changing one light bulb from a 100W incandescent to a 20W compact fluorescent for the life of the light bulb |
0.65 tonnes |
| Changing one light bulb from a 100W incandescent to a 20W compact fluorescent for the life of a home (50 years) |
6.5 tonnes |
| Changing from an electric hot water to a gas hot water system for one year |
3 tonnes |
| Changing from an electric hot water to a gas hot water system for the life of a home (50 years) |
150 tonnes |
| Upgrading from the least efficient fridge to the most efficient fridge on the market (over their lifetime) |
10 tonnes |
| Reducing your electricity bill by $120 |
1 tonne |
| Reducing car use by 10km a day for a year |
1.3 tonnes |
| Average Australian family's transport each year |
6 tonnes |
| 345 litres of petrol |
1 tonne |
| A return trip to Europe by air4 |
10 tonnes |
| Greenhouse gas emissions from a 2 star air-conditioner over its lifetime of ten years5 |
18 tonnes |
| Greenhouse gas emissions from a 4 star air-conditioner over its lifetime of ten years5 |
15 tonnes |
With the substantial increase in uptake of air-conditioning in recent times, these last statistics become even more important. Not only does this uptake of air-conditioners impact upon the level of greenhouse gas emissions of individual households, but it also increases the burden on energy infrastructure due to the increase in peak loads. Buildings designed using sustainable principles can offset the embodied energy invested in the building fabric, by being less reliant on artificial forms of heating and cooling.
| 1 |
Source: LCA Fact Sheet, Centre for Sustainable Housing, University of Newcastle |
| 2 |
Source: all greenhouse gas emission information unless otherwise noted are sourced from Australian Greenhouse Office, 2003, Global Warming Cool It!, http://www.greenhouse.gov.au/gwci/ |
| 3 |
Source: Australian Greenhouse Office, Your Home Technical Manual |
| 4 |
Source: Grigg, A. 2006, “Business gets what government neglects: The right climate for hot money”, Australian Financial Review |
| 5 |
Source: Western Australian Office of Energy, 2004, Information Paper: The impact of residential air-conditioning on the Western Australian Electricity System, http://www.energy.wa.gov.au/cproot/603/2759/Air%20conditioning%20paper.pdf |
For further information please refer to the following brochures:
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Embodied Energy & Life Cycle Analysis Background Paper:
Examines the concept of embodied energy and its context in the energy consumed over the lifetime of an average house. |
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>> Download PDF (350KB) | |
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