Soaring divorce rates cited as factor in global warming, environmental stress

authordefault
on

As world leaders in Bali strive for agreement on a successor to the Kyoto Protocol, a new study in the U.S. has given the climate-change struggle a domesticย perspective.

The escalating number of divorces leads to greater use of energy, researchers say, and governments should take this into account when formulating environmentalย policies.

Divorce is bad for the environment as it leads to more households with fewer people and greater consumption of water and energy, says a study published in this week’s online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy ofย Sciences.

Researchers said housing units require space, construction materials and fuel to heat and cool, regardless of the number ofย inhabitants.

In the U.S. in 2005, divorced households consumed an extra 73 billion kilowatt hours of electricity and 627 billion gallons of water. Thirty-eight million extra rooms required heating and lighting that same year, costing $6.9 billion in additional utility costs, plus a further $3.6 billion for water, and other costs such as landย use.

The study concluded that a married household uses resources more efficiently than a divorced household because people watch the same television, share air conditioning and heat, and use the sameย refrigerator.

authordefault
Admin's short bio, lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipisicing elit. Voluptate maxime officiis sed aliquam! Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipisicing elit.

Related Posts

on

While Alberta premier Danielle Smith demands new oil corridors, the Macdonald Laurier Institute notes that pipeline capacity is currently โ€˜sufficient.โ€™

While Alberta premier Danielle Smith demands new oil corridors, the Macdonald Laurier Institute notes that pipeline capacity is currently โ€˜sufficient.โ€™
on

The regulator has opened a case against the Tufton Street group.

The regulator has opened a case against the Tufton Street group.
on

Two of Farageโ€™s mayors have this week backed clean energy projects, seemingly at odds with the partyโ€™s anti-climate stance.

Two of Farageโ€™s mayors have this week backed clean energy projects, seemingly at odds with the partyโ€™s anti-climate stance.
on

Boycott reflects wider concerns over the role of communications firms in protecting polluters.

Boycott reflects wider concerns over the role of communications firms in protecting polluters.