Affluence and energy demand

Personal consumption accounts for two-thirds of the U. S. Energy bill. Direct energy needs - residential heat and light, auto fuel - account for one-half of this amount; the other half goes for goods and services and is thus an indirect consumer demand. The relative importance and implications for conservation schemes of these two types of energy demand as a function of income are compared. Attempts to conserve energy through more efficient residential or automobile use will have less effect, on a percentage basis, on the energy impact of the affluent, since such measures deal only with direct energy use. With increasing affluence, people will spend more for services that are of relatively low energy intensity. Figures do confirm that the energy intensity of expenditures decreases with income. However, it is also seen that transportation other than the automobile is almost twice as energy-intensive per dollar as educational and medical service. The extent to which the energy intensity will decrease depends on the degree to which energy-intensive transportation modes, such as airplanes, are selected.