Reducing residential energy use for a sustainable future: fossil fuel taxation as a tool to reduce the indirect energy demand and related CO2 emissions of Dutch households

In the energy domain, sustainable development ultimately requires a transition from the current fossil fuel dependent society to a society based on renewable energy. In the case of fossil fuel use, like many other environmentally sensitive practices, it is increasingly recognized that households constitute an important factor. Residential energy demands include the direct demand for energy (heating, electrical appliances and private transport) as well as the energy needed to manufacture consumer goods and services (the household indirect energy demand). In the Netherlands, this indirect energy consumption currently contributes to more than 50 of the total primary residential energy consumption. In contrast with direct energy saving options, reducing the indirect energy use involves households only in a minor way. This article explores potential relationships between a substantial energy tax-subsidy scheme directed at manufacturers and the indirect energy use of Dutch households.Copyright © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. and ERP Environment