[Greenbuilding] Jevon and plumbers (was Re: Energy Star Clothes Dryers Program Launch)

[RT]

On Mon, 30 Jul 2012 10:23:56 -0400, Clarke Olsen <colsen at fairpoint.net>  
wrote:

> Time again to remember Jevon's Paradox: the more efficiently something  
> is used, the more we will use.


Pwah!  I say the same thing to Jevon as I would to the plumber who told my  
nieghbour

    " ... if  your well is drilled the chances of it going dry are slim to  
nil
      but dug  wells go dry"

To both, I would say   "Horse-puck hockey !"

As a "for instance"...

The sole auxiliary heat source for my home (other than occupancy gains)  
has always been a woodstove.

In the days before EPA-approved designs existed, I had a down-draft unit  
which implemented secondary combustion. While it was a darned impressively  
efficient unit, the smalled EPA woodstove that I replaced it with after  
over 20 years of service has turned out to be even more efficient.

The net result is that I use less firewood per heating season as compared  
to the older less efficient woodstove and there would be no point in using  
the stove any more than it is used now because the house would overheat.

Okay. Another example just came to me.

My newest car is much more fuel-efficient than my previous vehicle but I  
put fewer miles on the newer car simply because I use my bicycles more  
than I used to.

I could probably think of more examples but I learned long ago to not  
believe anything a plumber tells me and I think that I'll add this "Jevon"  
character to my $#!+ list of "Don't believe 'em-ers"


-- 
=== * ===
Rob Tom					AOD257
Kanata, Ontario, Canada

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