In a Time magazine article from earlier this year, columnist Bryan Walsh wrote a one page piece on the so-called “SnackWell effect” and energy conservation. SnackWells is   a low calorie cookie introduced several years ago. The effect goes something like this: SnackWells have fewer calories so people feel justified eating more of them. Walsh applied similar thinking to energy efficient devices: namely people use them more than they would use the equivalent energy intensive devices.

The following figures are cited by Walsh regarding consumption and energy efficient devices: 5-12% – loss in expected monthly savings from efficient lights because of additional usage; 10-30% loss in expected savings from efficient furnaces; 57% increase in energy consumption from 1970 to 2005. As mentioned time and time again, behavioral change is a prerequisite for making progress.

Buying new appliances may help the economy. However, increasing consumption serves as a double whammy for consumers. Not only have people spent more money on new devices, but they also end up with huger energy bills, the opposite of the intended effect. Walsh cites a 2007 report from the UK Energy Research Centre  which estimates that the over consumption by those who think they’re saving energy “could reduce the savings from energy efficiency by 10% or more.”

The point of the article is that “cutting back on energy consumption, like dieting, is not an excuse to gorge ourselves on less guilty pleasures.” Well said.

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