Effects of changes in residential end-uses and behavior on aggregate carbon intensity: comparison of 10 OECD countries for the period 1970 through 1993

Patterns of the evolution of aggregate carbon intensity from residential end uses show greater variability than other sectors. For some countries in this analysis, this measure exhibits significant decreases, while for other countries this measure exhibits significant increases over the period of analysis. The Adaptive Weighted Divisia rolling base year index specification is applied to carbon emissions from the residential sector for 10 OECD countries,for the period 1970-1993. Decreases in aggregate carbon intensity for six of the countries range less than 8% to almost 72%, and may be attributed to changes in three different factors. However, for all of the countries, decreases are offset by shifts in end-use structure toward more carbon-intensive activities. These shifts are driven by an increase in the number of households with a corresponding increase in floor space, acquisition of greater numbers of major appliances and by an increase in the 'other' energy consumption category. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.