Guest blog by Fraser Winterbottom, Director of Delivery at the Energy Saving Trust
The recent news that two Google searches use about the same amount of CO2 as boiling the kettle for a cup of tea highlights those small everyday tasks we may not even realise use energy or emit C02.
I was reminded of this last week when a few of the water companies came in to talk to us about how they are beginning to use energy and money savings to encourage their customers to save water in the home. So how are water and energy linked? Sustainable living is about looking at the ‘whole home’ and by saving water you can save energy too. The process water goes through to get to our taps in a drinkable form takes a considerable amount of energy, even more so if the water is heated.
It may seem obvious that by fitting a water efficient showerhead you can reduce the amount of water you use, but according water companies their customers are surprised that this simple measure is also impacting their energy bills and saving them money. Waterwise research suggests that the energy used annually to pump, treat and heat the water in the average family's home produces the carbon equivalent of a return flight from London to New York!
The cross over between water saving and energy saving is an area that the Energy Saving Trust is only just beginning to explore. Establishing the link between water, energy and our actions enables us to give better advice to those that need it.