The reality of energy poverty in our houses
When we talk about modern countries, the concept of energy poverty seems far away, but nothing further from reality, in Spain, the family spending cuts are concepts that for many families are intertwined with the reality of their economy battered due to the crisis and circumstances that never we thought they would come. According to the third study called “Poverty, vulnerability and energy inequality. New analysis approaches”, has been presented by the Association of Sciences Environments (ACA – Spain). More of five million Spaniards have not been able to heat their homes appropriately.
To be aware of how we are doing, we can identify the following graph of the evolution of AROPE (State Evolution of Poverty and Exclusion)
Among the main conclusions it is highlighted that… “11% of households in Spain, 5.1 million people declare themselves incapable to keep your home at an adequate temperature in this time of year” or that “There has been a 22% increase in two years in those homes unable to maintain comfort suitable”.
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The report concludes that NOT all autonomous communities are just as vulnerable to this problematic. The most affected are; Andalusia, Extremadura, Castilla-La Máncha and Murcia are the 4 areas with highest incidence of energy poverty that follow the same path as in 2012. In On the other side we find the Basque Country, Principality of Asturias and Community of Madrid.
Significantly at the regional and local level, the new study indicates that up to 21% of Spanish homes are experiencing conditions associated with energy poverty and that 6%, approximately 2.6 million citizens, dedicate more than 15% of their family income to pay the energy bills that arrive rigorously every month.
Causes of poverty energy
- The reality is that socioeconomic characterization of households strongly influences, for example, depending on the educational level of the family, almost a third (31%) of the houses that cannot read or writing would be positioned as households in energy poverty according to the indicator of 10%, compared to 7% registered by the households with higher education.
- One of the main causes is the employment situation, the unemployment. 21% of families in unemployment situation registered delays in the payment of the bills, compared to 7% of working households.
- The composition of the familiar; households with the elderly single-parent families and households with three or more dependent children have higher rates.
- Depending on the ownership of the home and its regimen. The homes under rent, and especially those with lower incomes, show higher rates compared to property.
- Those households with medical problems have greater probability of being in a situation of poverty energetic. Thus, in the year two thousand and fourteen, the eighteen percent of households with someone with poor health at home, declared himself useless to sustain his residence at a suitable temperature, compared to ten percent story of homes that did not have anyone with bad health. Under this indicator, the households affected by energy poverty in households who report being in poor health.
What the ACA report and the EAPN (Red Commission for the Fight against Poverty and Social Exclusion)… yes:
- Power companies performed more than 500,000 outages of the electricity supply related to the non-payment of household electricity bills, 5.9% more than in 2014
- The increase in the electricity bill of around 0.8% during 2015 it has not helped either. During the past year, power outages due to non-payment of bills increased by 5.9%
- Contradictions between electric companies. While Iberdrola has seen defaults reduced by 265,175, 21% less than in the previous year, in Endesa the cuts have increased by 70%, to 241,306.
Explained in a simple way the meaning poverty energy and why it occurs.
Possible solutions to poverty energy
- Promoting energy rehabilitation of buildings (See energy efficiency measures) with a poverty approach energy, as a medium and long-term solution to this problematic and as a precautionary measure to reduce the future vulnerability of the population.
- The reformulation of the social bonus to adapt it to the reality of fragile users. act in the field of supply cuts with legislative changes and expand access to aid funds for the most difficult situations fragile.
- The reform of financing policies in efficiency energy with the intention of favoring primarily fragile and troubled homes to invest in their residence.
- The best use in the field of micro-efficiency.
- Promote training programs aimed at fragile groups in terms of consumption habits and efficiency energetic.
- Progress the transfer and use of information relevant for better decision-making, including the collection of official statistics.
When administrations hide the problem underneath of the carpet and while, from Europe, the The European Parliament has asked this Thursday that "be ensure that throughout the winter period no shuts off power to any home and it reboots the supply to those who no longer have». The MEPs approved by three hundred and ten votes in favor and seventy-three against and twenty-six abstentions one non-legislative resolution by the Hungarian Tamás Meszerics, which demands a “moratorium on the disconnection of the heating» (More info HERE)
Access to the report of the Association of Environmental Sciences (ACA – Spain)… HERE
To know many more. The recommended report and full EAPN. Red Cross continues the series of analysis on the social vulnerability of people with which the Institution works, which also includes the energy poverty, a report with very good quality technique… HERE.
