Fossil gas – households in hot water Jim Crosthwaite and Amaryll Perlesz
In the last issue of Chain Reaction, I explained that emissions of fossil gas need to be tackled on many fronts (Crosthwaite 2020a). Here I look at gas used for heating hot water in households. Household use of gas helps to legitimate the fossil gas industry, which loves to promote gas as clean and natural (ENA 2017a, 2017b), and even warm and cuddly (Mazengarb 2020). The industry will do everything possible to ensure households remain connected to the gas supply. How can the climate movement challenge this? There is a huge opportunity for massive change away from household gas in the next 15 years. By 2035, nearly every hot water service (HWS) in Australia will be replaced. Their expected life is only 10–12 years. Imagine over three million gas-run HWS being replaced by electric! That should be our ambition with the heat source being a heat pump, solar thermal, PV diverter, direct PV or an instantaneous electric system (RENEW 2017). In 2014, ABS found an estimated 3.4 million HWS in Australia running on mains gas, and another 387,900 running on LPG/bottled gas. 75% of Melbourne households relied on gas for hot water, as did over 60% of households in Adelaide and Perth and 46% in the ACT, falling to 35% in Sydney and 13% in Brisbane. In regional Victoria, 45% were estimated to use mains gas, and 7% used LPG/bottled gas. Over 10% of households in regional Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia relied on LPG/bottled gas (ABS 2014). Building momentum away from fossil gas in households will have flow-on effects. As people disconnect from gas, they will become community advocates for a renewable economy. Scepticism about advertising by the fossil gas industry will grow. Reducing demand for gas will be recognised as better than expanding supply to meet so-called shortages.
Options for action on gas HWS
The problem Unfortunately, without public intervention, most gas HWS will be replaced with another gas one because of price and decision-making by households, landlords and builders. Continued use of gas for hot water is not a massive source of emissions, but it will delay Australian households going all-electric for cooking, heating and cooling, and disconnecting the gas. Here are three barriers that will require a strong community campaign to address. Decision-making process and who is involved. Going without hot water is most inconvenient, and people who own their own homes will rush to ring a plumber and get a new appliance
26
Chain Reaction #139
as soon as possible. They will typically make a snap decision. Weighing up the pros and cons of going electric, and choosing the right type of electrically run service, takes time and energy. Only 10-15% of new HWS are ‘considered purchases’ by owners. A massive 55-65% are ‘emergency purchases’ after breakdown (E3 Hot Water Systems Roadmap 2018). The plumber or retailer has a major influence on these decisions. Builders of new houses install the remaining 25–30% of new HWS. They are driven by capital cost, without regard for the running cost to be borne by the household. The owner of an investment property will have similar priorities. Price. Running costs of electric HWS are cheaper than for gas, whereas upfront costs are higher. However, recent increases in the domestic cost of fossil gas makes the additional capital cost of an electric HWS with a high efficiency heat pump a more attractive proposition in both the short and longer term. The financial impact of going off gas depend on location, household intention and gas price; replacing gas is certainly best if it is the first step towards an all-electric home (Lombard & Price 2018). Commercial reality of the gas industry, its regulation and standards. As illustrated above, households do not make decisions about HWS in isolation, if they make them at all. The plumber, the appliance retailer, the builder and even the architect are all likely to be expert in gas systems, rather than the alternatives. They need to be guided and helped as part of a just transition away from fossil fuels. There are many standards and regulatory issues, at state and commonwealth levels, that need to be addressed. Allston (2020) highlights the hurdles faced in making the shift to an all-electric home in Victoria. These are also clear in Environment Victoria’s report on opportunities to reduce gas use (Northmore Gordon 2020) and in the work of the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards Regulator (GEMS 2018). Meanwhile, gas industry players are writing detailed reports, making submissions or lobbying to maintain regulations and standards that suit them. There are seven associations covering different parts of the industry (Crosthwaite 2020a, 2020b), but most of them have a shared 2050 vision (ENA 2017a), using the promise of hydrogen technology as a cover for continued use of gas (Forcey 2018). Vigilance is required! Even green energy suppliers have recently moved into selling gas to households. Energy Locals was granted a Victorian retail licence on 6 May 2020, and Powershop some years earlier (see the Essential Services Commission website). Let’s make this an opportunity, as outlined below.
May 2021
Why not ask your group to brainstorm what might be done about household use of gas – get the ideas down, then prioritise them for action. Emergency advice • Councils and state government to promote accredited green plumbers and electricians • An independent hotline to ring for expert advice when the HWS breaks down • Promotion through council rate notices, community groups, church groups, social media • Magnetic fridge stickers with the hotline number and other key advice Green energy retailers • Produce a public plan with 3, 5 and 10-year targets for shifting customers off gas • Use the plan to attract new customers keen to get off gas, but who need time to transition
