Community Problem Solving

Overconsumption of Electricity (OcE) in Universiti Brunei Darussalam

The Problems

1. Economical aspect:

a. Electricity is heavily subsidised in Brunei. Therefore, people tend to overconsume electricity and take it for granted.

b. Subsidising of electrical cost puts a burden on the government as the budget for electrical subsidies will need to be increased to sustain the running and maintaining of electricity.

c. The energy usage in Brunei is the second highest in the region in terms of kilowatt.

d. Electricity demand of Brunei will increase by 26% in 2030, and this is a problem as 99% of Brunei’s electricity is fired by natural gas which is a non-renewable resource. In addition, the burning of fossil fuels release greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

2. Governance and legal aspects:

a. Lack of enforcement in ensuring customers pay bills on time prevails in Brunei, and therefore electricity tends to be taken for granted and overused.

b. UBD does not have any explicit regulations regarding the overconsumption of electricity. Negative behaviours remain unpunished and unchanged.

3. Socio-cultural aspect:

a. Lack of awareness on the need to reduce electrical usage.

b. Spill over effect on water and gas consumptions.

c. People are not bothered with reducing electrical consumption due to low electrical cost.

d. Similar behaviour is seen in UBD.

e. Celebrations and festivities also contribute to the large consumption of electricity.

4. Environmental aspect:

a. The generation of electricity in Brunei emits greenhouse gases (e.g. carbon dioxide) into the atmosphere.

b. The carbon dioxide emission for Brunei is increasing every year.

c. The more fossil fuels are burned to generate electricity, the higher the amount of greenhouse gases that are released into the atmosphere, thus contributing to global warming.

d. Natural oil and gas are non-renewable resources. If overconsumption of electricity is not curbed, these resources will not last as long as they can if electricity was used diligently.

Solutions

1. Environmental aspect:

a. Establishment and utilisation of renewable energy (e.g. solar power, wind power, hydroelectric power). Solar power would suit Brunei due to the consistent level of sunlight available throughout the year.

b. The government could encourage and give assistance (budget) to those wishing to use solar power at their homes.

c. Encourage the use of energy efficient appliances.

d. Carry out exhibitions and symposiums that create and increase awareness amongst the public regarding efficient electricity consumption.

2. Social-cultural aspect:

a. Involve and incorporate the views, opinions and ideas from the community and society concerning the overconsumption of electricity.

b. Involvement of youths and students are particularly essential so as to increase acceptability by the target group.

c. Through formal education (primary, secondary and tertiary), students can be educated on the situation of electricity consumption in Brunei.

d. ‘Going-green’ campaigns can create and increase awareness (e.g. the introduction of Awang CekMat mascot. This mascot can be viewed as a positive way to reach out to children and youths as the mascot is cartoon character and therefore appeals to young people. It can also be a good role model to children.

3. Economic aspect:

a. The government could facilitate the increased preference for energy efficient appliances (e.g. Energy Star labelled products) by using the application of rebates as an incentive for those who purchase environmental friendly appliances.

b. New tariff schemes should be researched as the current system is inefficient.

4. Legal / Infrastructure / Governance aspect:

a. The government could implement a legislation that requires energy providers to use more energy efficient sources (e.g. Energy Action Plan 2005 in California which calls for utility providers to invest in energy efficient methods whenever the cost is cheaper than conventional power plants).

b. The government could also facilitate the emergence of energy saving techniques from the utility providers.

c. Stricter enforce regarding payment of electricity bills.

d. The government should also provide budget for UBD to develop and establish environmentally sound technology.

Actions

1. Strategy 1 – Creating and using blog sites:

1. Make use of blog sites as teenagers and young adults are particularly the most active users of them.
2. The article or message posted on blogs will raise issues regarding the overconsumption of electricity in Brunei. It will also list out the possible solutions to alleviate the problem.
3. Bloggers will be able to provide comments and feedback on the issue, and thus will help us to understand the point of view of this age group.
4. Where: www.ranoadidas.com as it is widely known to UBD students and Friendster (www.friendster.com) users.
5. The messages posted on both sites are based on the information obtained from newspapers, Energy Week, etc.

2. Strategy 2 – Newspaper articles to Borneo Bulletin:

1. An article expressing the members’ concern regarding the issues of overconsumption of electricity is to be submitted to Borneo Bulletin (to be published under the ‘Opinions’ page).
2. The article will raise issues regarding the overconsumption of electricity in Brunei. It will also list out the possible solutions to alleviate the problem.
3. Main aim is to get feedbacks and comments from Borneo Bulletin readers. In addition the article’s purpose is to raise public awareness regarding the worrying issue, as well as to publicise the blog discussion.
4. Actual result:

The article was not successfully published in Borneo Bulletin.

3. Strategy 3 – Actions done in UBD

1. Meetings were made with the Estate Section of UBD to discuss the actions that UBD was undertaking in managing and reducing electricity in the campus. The meetings were also to identify the actual technical logistics of current practices. This is so that methods to reduce electricity use can be suggested and negotiated.
2. Questionnaires distributed to UBD students to obtain their comments and opinions concerning the problems and possible solutions to tackle the overconsumption of electricity in UBD.
3. Actual result:

The group members managed to talk with the officer at the Estate department regarding the various ways in which UBD may be able to reduce the consumption of electricity.

30 surveys were given out to UBD students.