Researching Consumption and Sustainability

Convenor:

Dr Ben Anderson - Department of Sociology, University of Essex

With:Dr Adrian Evans - Department of Sociology, University of Essex

Dr Alison Browne - Lancaster Environment Centre, University of Lancaster

Dr Sue Venn & Dr Kate Burningham - Department of Sociology, University of Surrey

Dr Murray Goulden - Horizon Research Institute, University of Nottingham

Miss Joanne Parker - Department of Geography, University of Lougborough

Consumption by proxy:Analysing Traces of Water

Dr Ben Anderson - Department of Sociology, University of EssexDr Alison Browne - Lancaster Environment Centre

Dr Will Medd - Lancaster Environment Centre

ESRC Sustainable Practices Research Group3 July 2012

Why: Water is (going to be) a problem

Supply problems:• Locally/regionally scarce• Climate change effects?

Energy problems:• ‘Clean’ water costs • ‘Clean’ is a moving target

Demand problems:• 50% used by households• Drivers not well understood• Climate change effects?

Demographic problems• Increasing single person households

Source: DEFRA, 2011

2050

With no ‘behaviour’ change and no flow controls

Conceptual Framework

Water consumption = f(price + demographics + practices + attitudes) + error

‘habits’ ‘bodily and mental routines’

‘permanent dispositions’

?!EducationInformationExhortation

?Regulation/

Market/Supply

Policy levers

a temporally unfolding and spatially

dispersed nexus of doings and sayings

Schatzki, 1996

‘habits’, ‘bodily and mental routines’ ‘permanent dispositions’

Reckwitz, 2002;

Entities

Performance

habituation, routine, practical consciousness,

tacit knowledge, traditionPerformance often neither fully conscious

nor reflectiveWarde, 2005

Why people don’t do what they ‘should’ - Jim Skea, 2011

Practices?

“The recurrent enactment of specific practices leaves all sorts of “marks” – diet shows up in statistics on obesity; heating and cooling practices have effect on energy demand, and habits of laundry matter for water consumption. Identifying relevant “proxies” represents one way to go.”

SPRG Discussion Paper, 2012

Image: Eric Shipton, 1951

Practice Traces

What is currently unclear…

Water Consumption

Price Demographics Practices Attitudes

Error (uncertainty/things we can’t measure)

What is currently unclear…

Water Consumption

Price Demographics Practices Attitudes

Error (uncertainty/things we can’t measure)

Household water demand - proxies and traces

water (l/day)

Attitudes

Demographics

Price

Ideal

Practices

Proxy (Expenditure & Food Survey 2002-2009)

£ water/week

Attitudes

Demographics

Price

£/week

Shampoo,soapdetergents

Garden products

Fruit & Veg

Tea, coffee, juices

Why consumption survey data?

• Large n (c 6,000) & high quality (ONS)• Free for non-commercial use!• Household & individual expenditures• Finely coded

c11521t margarine and other vegetable fatsc11711t leaf and stem vegetables (fresh or chilled)c11731t vegetables grown for their fruit (fresh, chilled or frozen)c11751t dried vegetablesc11761t other preserved or processed vegetablesc11781t other tubers and products of tuber vegetablesc12241t vegetable juices

‘Veg’

• May reveal differing practices

Modelling approach

Expenditure & Food Survey 2002-2009 2005 prices

Selection: Have water meter (England) Pay water & sewerage combined

All households 39121

Metered 11119

Separate water & sewerage

1387

Remaining 9732

£0.00

£1.00

£2.00

£3.00

£4.00

£5.00

£6.00

£7.00

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Mean £ per week

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

Unmetered Metered % metered

Modelling approach

Model Metered water expenditure - demand

proxy Demographics (household) Ownership of dishwasher/washing

machine Consumption expenditures - practice

traces

Plus controls: Income, number of earners, region, Tenure, number rooms, number of

cars, accommodation type

Proxy (EFS 2002-2009)

£ water/week

Attitudes

Demographics

Price

£/week

Shampoo,soapdetergents

Garden products

Fruit & Veg

Tea, coffee, juices

0 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2 0.25 0.3

Block 1: Region, year, income controls

Block 2: Housing type

Block 3: Cars, employment status

Block 4: Number of persons & agedistributions

Block 5: Age of HRP, gender, disability

Block 6: Appliances

Block 7: Practices

r2 Change in r2

Overall model performance

Contributions to model

N Children < 14

N Children 14-16

N single males 16-18

N single females 16-18

N male adults < 45

N female adults < 45

N adults 45-60

N adults 60-65

N adults 65-70

N adults 70+

-0.8 -0.3 0.2 0.7 1.2

b

Demographic effects

(Traces of Practices?)

Washing machineDishwasher

PotatoesLeaf & stem vegetables

RicePasta

TeaCoffee

Fruit juices (incl squash)Vegetable juices

Mineral/spring waterSoap/shower gel

Laundry/LaundrettesDetergents/washing powder

Kitchen gloves/clothsGarden tools

Lawn mowersPlants, flowers, seeds

-0.5 -0.3 -0.1 0.1 0.3 0.5 0.7

b (coefficient)

Water traces: ‘Practices’ effects

Traces of Practices

?

Conclusions

• The practice proxies approach offers value

• But confounding problems?• Expenditures as proxies?• Garden/soil type?• Period of water use?• Included sewerage costs?

• Where next?• Practices based survey• Linked to metered consumption data

Thank you!

• ESRC Sustainable Practices Research Group• www.sprg.ac.uk/projects-fellowships/patterns-of-water

Contact:– Ben Anderson (benander@essex.ac.uk)