Learning object for comunication in Earth Science

1. Structural Analysis and weather impact of Italian domestic annual CO2 emissions: a survey
on 250 families.
Valentina Grasso 1, Alfonso Crisci 1 ,Valerio Capecchi 2
1
Institute of Biometeorology, National Research Council. Via Giovanni Caproni 8, 50145 ,
Firenze, Italy. phone: + 39 055 3033701
.
2
LaMMa consortium - Laboratory for Meteorology and Enviromental modelling - CNR Regione
Toscana . Via Madonna del Piano, 10, 50019 Sesto F.no, Florence, Italy, phone: + 39 055 4483045
The Institute of Biometeorology (CNR) have led a energy saving communication actions in RACES
project (Raising Awareness on Climate and Energy Savings -European programme LIFE+). Carbon
Budget was one of the most significant action involving 250 families annual monitoring of CO2
emissions generated by family’s consumption behaviours. Five selected Italian cities was
considered: Florence, Trento, Modena, Bari and Potenza, showing different climatic and
geographical features.
Family energy consumptions, and their equivalent CO2 emissions, have been investigated along
three main components: domestic winter heating, household electrical load and family mobility by
car or motorcycles. The first aim was to identify which are the structural factors, like building and
house features, heating surface and age structure, home location in urban context, the presence of
energy intensive domestic appliance (i.e dishwasher, air–conditioner) affect significantly the family
carbon budget and, in each geographical context, how the local weather have modulated energy
consumption and equivalent CO2 emissions. Weather derivative as HDD- Heating Degree Days,
CDD- Cooling Degree Days, and the amount of rainy days, RD, were considered.
The role and weight of each variable has investigated trough a generalized linear model framework.
factor significance design has been estimated for each family budget component (heating, electrical
and mobility). The second target of this work was to evaluate the effectiveness of the project’s
communication actions involving families as drivers of consumption’s reductions. Each action have
been evaluated as model confounders to quantify their impact on domestic consumption life-style.
Overall results are showed and presented.
Keywords: weather, energy consumption , C02 emissions, family, communication actions