Why It Matters
Energy (Gas) Consumption
Summary
We have calculated the amount of gas consumed in a given area.
Definition
| Datasets | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Postcode Average Gas Consumption | Quantifies the average gas consumption in KWh per household in the postcode |
| Borough Average Gas Consumption | Quantifies the average gas consumption in KWh per household in the borough |
| London-wide Average Gas Consumption | Quantifies the average gas consumption in KWh per household in London |
| Postcode Deviation from London-wide Average Gas Consumption | Tells you how much your selected postcode’s average gas consumption deviates from the London average |
| Z-score of Postcode Average Gas Consumption | Tells you how many standard deviations above the London average your selected postcode’s gas consumption is |
| Postcode Energy Use Intensity | Tells you the gas consumption in KWh per square foot in your selected postcode |
| Harmonised Score of Postcodes Energy Use Intensity | A rank score that lets you know your selected postcode’s Energy Use Intensity compared to other postcodes in London. The closer the score is to 100 the higher the Energy Use Intensity of the postcode. |
| Quartile of Postcode Energy Use Intensity | Tells you the quartile your selected postcode’s Energy Use Intensity falls within. |
Why the metric matters from commercial inhabitant’s perspective?
It’s important for a commercial resident to know how much gas they are likely to consume as of course the more one uses, the more one will have to pay. High gas consumption could be an indicator of poor insulation in a building, meaning heating has to be used more and for longer than it would in a building that is better at trapping heat. It could also be indicative of a poor boiler which wastes energy providing that heating and warming up warmer, as well as perhaps meaning there’s a high chance that any cooking facilities are powered by gas rather than electricity. This would all factor into business costs and the commercial unit’s ability to create a comfortable, warm environment for customers in the winter months.
Beyond just cost there’s a strong environmental incentive to consume less gas, which could factor into the business practices of the company on both a personal level or as a means of attracting customers through demonstrating one’s green credentials.
Why the metric matters from the residential inhabitant’s perspective?
The concerns of a residential inhabitant regarding their consumption of gas are almost identical to those of a commercial inhabitant. Cost is a huge factor and the higher the consumption the higher the gas bill, and perhaps it would be wise for a tenant to encourage their landlord to better insulate their property to lower heating bills and potentially prevent the condensation-related damage that naturally occurs if homes are poorly insulated and gas bills are high.
Again the green incentive to consume less gas is a strong one, as many become more environmentally conscious and search for ways that they can personally help prevent climate change. This is further motivation for landlords to properly insulate their properties.
General Commentary
Britain produces 40% of its power from natural gas. The consumption of natural gas is a controversial topic today as it is one of the big three fossil fuels that effectively power the world, the others being coal and oil. While global reserves are reasonably plentiful, its transportation simple and its storage safe, natural gas is indeed finite and putting too much faith in a non-renewable energy source may, according to some, come back to bite us.
The move to natural gas is considered by some experts to be a good temporary move in the fight against climate change, given that it burns cleaner than its alternatives, producing 45% less CO2 than coal and 30% less than oil, and is less liable to cause direct environmental damage in the form of spills or leeching. But others argue that it still produces large amounts of greenhouse gasses both in its extraction and burning, and is therefore a major contributor to climate change, meaning more needs to be done than just shifting from coal to gas to combat global warming.
One process of extracting shale gas is known as hydraulic fracturing or “fracking,” whereby operators force water mixed with chemicals into holes in rocks, building up pressure and causing the rocks to break apart and release gas that is trapped inside them. This practice is seen by many as damaging to the planet and to human health as it can sometimes lead to the release of radioactive materials and heavy metals which poison water supplies, and cause earthquakes and subsidence in residential areas. Fracking produces around 67% of natural gas in the USA, but is not used in the UK.
The UK has also recently (2021) found itself in rather challenging circumstances due to problems in gas supply from abroad. Given that the UK imports the almost half of its gas having sold off almost all of its gas storage facilities, leaving it with 1/20th of the storage of Italy and a fraction of the capacity of most other European countries despite its much larger population, the country’s gas supplies could run out over the winter. Gas prices have also risen as a result of the dwindling supply with many smaller energy providers going into administration and many households having to pay more in energy bills.
Trivia
Natural gas is actually odourless, the recognisable “gassy” smell is actually another gas called mercaptan that is added by utility companies so that it’s easier to notice a gas leak.
History
Natural gas was first discovered seeping out of the ground in Iran between 6000 and 2000 BCE and was described by early Middle Eastern writers, particularly in Azerbaijan. Most likely ignited by lightning, these seeps created the ‘eternal fires’ that were worshipped across ancient Persia. In some cases when the gas remained unlit they could cause hallucinations if breathed in over a long period of time, as was, so archaeologists (and Plutarch) believe, the case at Mount Parnassus, home of the Delphic oracle.
Gas was first used as a fuel by the Chinese, who had mentioned it around 900 BCE, and began drilling for it in Sichuan in 211 BCE, building bamboo pipelines to carry it to the point of use. Persia was the first place to use natural gas for cooking in the first century AD, but it took almost another 2000 years for natural gas to be “discovered” by Europeans, who witnessed native Americans igniting gases seeping from Lake Erie in 1626. Natural gas was found in England in 1659, but coal gas or town gas remained the preferred fuel for illumination until well into the 20th century, throughout which time it was very localised due to the lack of transportation technologies.
Pipeline technology improved in the 1930s and could extend more than 200 miles. The Northern Lights pipeline was constructed in Russia during the 1960s and ’70s, which reached across the Ural Mountains linking the Western Siberian gas fields in the Arctic Circle to Europe with a 3,400 mile line. Many more were built during this period but gas wasn’t seen as a major world energy source until the oil crises of the 1970s which saw numerous oil shortages and price hikes, encouraging a switch to gas.