When you get out of bed and notice that steam is coming out of your breath or that of your children and the doorknob or the bathroom faucet is freezing, it means that the temperature in your house that night dropped by 15 degrees. It may make you think (with your coat on) while you turn on the gas boiler to heat the environment, that you could have left it all night at minimum so as not to find a “penguin” one day when you wake up, but of course… With the falling energy prices you can’t afford it! It would also help to have better insulation in the walls or windows… but of course, you don’t think your landlord would be thrilled to ask him to spend the money on it without raising your rent. You murmur in annoyance as you reflect on the paradox that those who do not have their own house spend (and pay) more energy and suffer greater precariousness, and on top of that, they annoy the planet!… and it is a vicious circle that is difficult to get out of!
Situations like these are experienced by more and more people who cannot maintain decent conditions in their homes in winter (around 21 ºC in the living room and 18 ºC in the rest) and, if they do, they leave more than 10 % of your family income on it. Last year it went up to 5.2 million the number of people in this situation of energy vulnerability, and with dramatic rises in electricity and gas, the data for 2022 is expected to be worse.
For decades, governments and energy companies have instilled in us the idea that the cheapest and cleanest way to escape energy precariousness was through the misnamed “Natural gas”. That fossil fuel, which depends on speculative markets and geopolitical agreements, was our “salvation board” against energy poverty. For this reason, in recent decades the networks have spread through cities and towns, reaching more than 7.5 million homes. Also thanks to substantial public aid for gas infrastructure and to renovate old boilers for gas ones.
One recent study by Stanford University (USA) has shown that domestic gas boilers and stoves leach methane even when turned off. The study concludes that these appliances release about 1.3% of the methane they use (methane is the main component of natural gas), a potent greenhouse gas, through leaks and incomplete combustion. In addition, these devices release high levels of nitrogen oxides and other pollutants into our homes, exposing ourselves to respiratory diseases.
To try to change this situation, numerous organizations such as CAN Europe, Ecologistas En Acción or Greenpeace have launched a manifest to demand a clean, safe, healthy and affordable future for heating in Europe. We ask the European Commission, the European Parliament and the Spanish State for courageous legislation and aid to be able to improve insulation and replace fossil fuel heating with renewable alternatives in our homes, regardless of whether we own them or rent them, and with special attention to people in a situation of energy poverty.
If you missed the previous Sin Energía blogs:
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