The energetic parasitism of the wealthy rich

2024 Author: Seth Attwood | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 15:55

A new study by scientists from the University of Leeds in the UK has found extremely high disparities in energy use among rich and poor people, both within and between countries. The work examined energy inequality in 86 countries of the world - from highly developed to developing. For the calculation and analysis, data from the European Union and the World Bank were used. Scientists emphasize that this is the first such analysis, this has not been done before, according to the university's website.

The main finding of the study is that the richest 10% of the world's people consume about 20 times more energy than the poorest 10%. In addition, as incomes rise, people spend more money on energy-intensive goods: cars, yachts … And it is in the use of transport that the strongest inequality is observed - 10% of the rich consume 187 times more fuel and energy for travel than the same percentage of the poor. Moreover, fossil fuels are much larger than "green" ones. The rich also account for a third of the world's heating and cooking costs.

The researchers also highlight the uneven distribution of energy flows between countries. Of all the countries, Britain and Germany are the most responsible for energy costs. Thus, 20% of British citizens are included in the list of top energy consumers, along with 40% of residents of Germany and 100% of Luxembourg. Meanwhile, only 2% of China's population is on this list of wealthy consumers, and only 0.02% of those in India. And the poorest 20% of the UK consume 5 times more energy per person than 84% of India's population (that's roughly 1 billion).

At the same time, the bulk of the energy in the world and, in particular, in European countries is generated by burning fossil fuels, which leads to the emission of a large amount of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Such emissions contribute to an increase in the average world temperature, as a result, we have negative consequences in climate change.

The authors warn that without cutbacks in consumption and significant political intervention, energy footprints could double by 2050 from what they were in 2011, even if energy efficiency improves. If transport continues to depend on fossil fuels, this increase would be disastrous for the climate, and the study's authors suggest that persistent inequalities can be prevented through appropriate interventions. Different populations require different forms of action: energy-intensive consumption, such as flying and driving expensive cars, which mainly occurs at very high incomes, can be regulated through energy taxes.

The researchers say there is a need to seriously think about how to change the extremely uneven distribution of global energy consumption to tackle the dilemma of ensuring a decent life for all while protecting the planet's climate and ecosystems.