Energy conservation

:For the physical concepts, see conservation of energy and energy efficiency.

Related Topics:
Physical - Conservation of energy - Energy efficiency

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Energy conservation is the idealistic or economic practice of reducing the use of energy. This is done in two ways:

Related Topics:
Idealistic - Economic - Energy

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• Increasing energy efficiency, to output the same level of goods and services with a small amount of input energy.
• Decreasing the amount of a certain activity, or reduce the quality of a service, to reduce the amount of energy needed.

Individuals and organizations that are direct consumers of energy may want to conserve energy in order to reducing heating or electrical bills. Manufacturers and other industries may want to increase efficiency in order to maximize profit or cost-effectiveness.

Related Topics:
Consumers - Cost-effectiveness

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On a larger scale, energy conservation is an element of energy policy. The need to increase the available supply of energy (for example, through the creation of new power plants, or by the importation of more energy) is lessened if societal demand for energy can be reduced, or if growth in demand can be slowed. This makes energy conservation is an important part of the debates over climate change and the replacement of non-renewable resources with renewable energy.

Related Topics:
Energy policy - Climate change - Non-renewable resources - Renewable energy

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Encouraging energy conservation among consumers if often advocated as a cheaper or more environmentally sensitive alternative to increased energy production.

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Energy conservation: Issues with Energy Conservation ►