A B O U TD W

D W

Deut sche W elle

A K AD DWE . MD I E E I N
3 0
L A N G U A G E S

Search TOP STORIES

TOP STORIES MEDIA CENTER PROGRAM LEARN GERMAN

GERMANY

WORLD

BUSINESS

SCI-TECH

ENVIRONMENT

CULTURE

SPORTS

TOP STORIES / WORLD / ASIA

E N V I R O N M E N T

The environmental price of 'staying cool'

Asia's current air conditioner use is only a fraction of its potential. With increasing
affluence and urbanization in the region, what will be the environmental effects when
millions more machines start running?

With cooler weather beginning to sweep across Asia, some countries are breathing a bigger sigh of
relief than usual. Parts of India, China and both North and South Korea all sweltered through higher
than average temperatures during the 2014 summer, peaking at 48 degrees Celsius in the Indian
capital New Delhi.
The dangerous temperatures meant that energy use also skyrocketed, as millions of citizens seeking
respite from the heat turned on appliances such as air conditioners.
But research is showing that Asia's current usage of air conditioners is only a small proportion of what
it could be. With continuously improving standards of living and urbanization, what will be the
environmental impact when millions more machines are switched on?
For many decades, the United States has been the world's top user of air conditioners. Now Asia is
catching up, with the region experiencing the fastest rate of population growth, and more of its
citizens moving to already jam-packed cities. Figures on the global air conditioning market in 2013
show China and Japan already make up 82 percent of the Asia-Pacific segment.
A 2007 International Energy Agency report on air conditioners in developing countries predicted a
dramatic rise in residential electricity consumption in Asian countries in the near future. It listed
China as an example, citing the rate of adoption of air conditioners as having increased from 8 to 70
percent in less than a decade. Andrew DeWit, a professor of Economic Policy Studies at Japan's Rikkyo
University, says China is likely to eclipse the United States' 87 percent ownership of the machines by
converted by W eb2PDFConvert.com

2020.

China is predicted to overtake the US in terms of air

conditioner usage by 2020.

In a recently published article in the magazine

American Scientist, University of Michigan's Dr
Michael Sivak says the current cooling demand
in Asia countries is "nowhere near the possible
peak," as many Asians simply can't afford air
conditioners at the present time. As the balance
changes, and with the potential temperature
changes caused by global warming, Sivak
predicts habitual use of air conditioners will
increase accordingly.

The cost of modern comfort

But this desire to feel cool indoors has led to many problems, including an added strain on power
supplies, often in areas with already unstable or limited networks. India and China, featuring the
largest, most densely-populated cities in the world, experience frequent power cuts and brownouts
during peak energy demand periods. Sivak says that around 40 percent of energy in India's largest city
Mumbai goes towards just trying to keep temperatures bearable in stuffy offices and high-rise
apartment blocks.
And countries such as Vietnam are forced to import significant amounts of energy in order to keep up
with domestic demand, as well as rely upon the use of polluting energy sources such as oil and gas.
D W

R E C O M M E N D At
S a more local level, Rikkyo University's Professor DeWit says

Climate change's health

toll: 'We can save millions
of lives, even now'
While the effects of climate change
on the environment are gaining
wide attention, there's a lack of
awareness about the impact on
human health. The WHO's Diarmid
Campbell-Lendrum tells DW how
both can be adressed.
(28.08.2014)

Energy-hungry Japan puts

'smart towns' to the test
Japan reverses its
withdrawal from nuclear
power
Eco-friendly cooling in
India

"the most noticeable negative effect" from using air conditioners is

the intensification of "heat islands." These are localized areas that
are warmer than their surroundings, for example cities and other
built-up regions.
According to the US Environmental Protection Agency these
places can be hotter by up to 3 degrees Celsius, making people
living there more likely to feel the need to use appliances to cool
down. Research published in the Journal of Geophysical Research
shows that even after the sun goes down this residual heat doesn't
dissipate, making our nights as well as our days hotter.
Even the manufacturing process for air conditioners requires
extraordinary amounts of power and produces harmful
greenhouse gases, says Professor DeWit. On top of this, the
refrigerants used inside the conditioners can be ozone-depleting
chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), particularly in older machines.
In 1987 the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the
Ozone Layer was introduced, as a way of phasing out these
damaging chemicals. This led to manufacturers replacing CFCs
with hydrofluorocarbons, which have no impact on the fragile
ozone layer. However, they turned out not to be the cure-all
originally thought, with studies revealing they are in fact a major
contributor to global warming.

All this before they are even turned on.

Sivak says we are stuck in a cycle of self-destruction. "It is clear that the global energy demand for airconditioning will grow substantially as nations become more affluent, with the consequences of
climate change potentially accelerating the demand."

The right solution?

converted by W eb2PDFConvert.com

But there is still hope that new technologies and

innovations can help reduce the world's reliance on
cooling appliances.
Sivak says he believes efficiency improvements
between 20 and even 70 percent can be made in
air conditioner models. The reasons why they
haven't been made yet, he says, are simple: not
enough time and money.
Many older air conditioners still contain ozone-

Elsewhere, inter-company collaborations are

damaging chemicals.
producing promising results, such as the recent
three-year project between Singapore's Agency for Science, Technology and Research and Japanese
electronics giant Hitachi. Together they developed a combined heat and power plant, that converts
waste heat into energy to then power air conditioning systems.
Governments are playing their part too.
Professor DeWit says although Japan had previously showed interest in environmental and
ecologically-friendly initiatives, it redoubled its efforts in the wake of the 2011 tsunami disaster.
He says Japan began to show enthusiasm for previously discounted technologies, such as district
heating and cooling systems which use chilled water to cool buildings. "I think the dominance of the
big utilities and companies like Hitachi and Panasonic selling individual air conditioning units
weakened after Fukushima and the destruction of the nuclear safety and low-cost myths."
But the desire to go green has not translated easily into real change.
Japan in particular has found the shift away from nuclear power difficult, with warnings of power
shortages as existing infrastructure struggles to keep up with demand.
In April of this year, Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who took office after the 2011 disaster,
approved a plan to restart nuclear power reactors, as well as to build new plants. The move comes in
the wake of a bad summer for the nation, with at least 15 people dying and thousands more
hospitalized with heat-related conditions.
Even culture plays a part in how people use air
conditioning. The University of Sydney's
Professor Richard de Dear says many workers'
preference to wear suits no matter the external
temperature means many offices are overcooled.
"The current clothing behavior is costing us a
fortune in energy and greenhouse emissions,"
Relaxing dress codes has proved harder in some
he says. However, relaxing dress codes may
countries than in others.
prove difficult for some countries to adopt. Since
2005 the 'Cool Biz' campaign has been run by
the Japanese government in an effort to encourage management to use air conditioners less, and
allow employees to dress more casually. Reactions though, have been mixed.
Tokyo-based Professor DeWit thinks we already have the answers to solve our air conditioner woes but we're too impatient. "Air conditioners keep getting increasingly efficient. But one problem is that
global sales accelerate faster than the efficiency cuts, power demands and waste heat emissions into
the immediate environment."
He hopes India may come up with a solution, as using air conditioning isn't as ingrained in their
culture as it is already in many others. But it can't be all that long before everyone understands the
price of keeping cool.

converted by W eb2PDFConvert.com

Date 11.09.2014
Author Andrea Nierhoff
Related Subjects Asia
Keywords Asia, air conditioners, India, Japan, Singapore, global warming, energy, power
Share

Facebook

Twitter

Google+

More

Feedback: Send us an e-mail. Please include your name and country in your reply.
Print

Print this page

Permalink http://dw.de/p/1DAQp

R E L A T E D

C O N T E N T

Sri Lanka's new leader to

visit China after scaling
back ties 25.03.2015

Rescue and relief effort

begins in cyclone-hit
Vanuatu 15.03.2015

Asia accounts for 'nearly a

third' of global arms
imports 16.03.2015

After suspending Chinese-funded

projects and seeking closer ties
with India, Sri Lankan President
Maithripala Sirisena heads to
Beijing in what experts view as a
bid to restore a more balanced
relationship. DW examines.

Authorities and relief workers in

Vanuatu are assessing the damage
caused by one of the region's worst
weather disasters. The true extent
of the destruction from Cyclone
Pam is not yet known.

Five of the top 10 largest importers

of major weapons are in Asia:
India, China, Pakistan, South
Korea and Singapore. They
account for 30 percent of the
global volume of arms imports,
SIPRI's Siemon Wenzenman tells
DW.

TOP STORIES
Germany
World
Business
Sci-Tech
Environment
Culture
Sports

MEDIA CENTER
Live TV
All media content
Latest Programs
Podcasts

A - Z Index

PROGRAM
What's on TV?
TV Program Guide
TV Programs
Video on Demand

LEARN GERMAN
German Courses
German XXL
Community D
Teaching German

EXPLORE DW
RSS
Reception
Social Media
Newsletters
Podcasting
Mobile

ABOUT DW
Who we are
Press
Business & Sales
Advertising
Hotels
Service
My DW
DW AKADEMIE
Media Development
Master's Degree
Traineeship
Training
About us

2015 Deutsche Welle | Privacy Policy | Legal notice | Contact

converted by W eb2PDFConvert.com