Energy efficiency is a personal priority for roughly 80% of Americans, and at least two-thirds believe political bickering is getting in the way of reducing overall energy use, according to two recent polls.
Conducted by the University of Texas at Austin and the nonprofit organization OurEnergyPolicy.org, the two surveys focused on consumer support for energy efficiency. The UT Energy Poll, which involved 2,133 U.S. residents aged 18 and older, found that 79% of American consumers view energy efficiency as a priority – up from 72% just six months ago.
The OurEnergyPolicy.org survey, which focused on 550 energy professionals, counted 82% indicating that energy efficiency was a high or very high personal priority, with less than 1% saying it was not a personal priority at all.
In both studies, at least 65% of respondents named “political squabbling or stalemate” as a barrier to making energy-efficient products more widely available.
However, the two studies differed on a few key points. More consumers than energy professionals said the highest savings would come from investing in energy-efficient appliances (19% vs. 3%), while energy professionals favored improving the energy efficiency of their vehicles instead (31% vs. 21%).
