What is PEAK Plus? PEAK Plus is a case study on the effects of three key variables of household electricity usage. The variables are: - Participation in the PEAK student education program
- A financial incentive to reduce electricity usage during high demand times awarded as a credit on families’ Southern California Edison(SCE) bill
- Participation in the PEAK program paired with the financial incentive
Who facilitated the study?
The Energy Coalition and Southern California Edison (SCE) How did the study work?
Close to 500 families with a child in the fourth grade during the 2007-2008 school year were randomly selected from schools in seven southern California cites, and offered participation in the PEAK Plus study. They are divided into four groups, testing each of the three variables above plus a comparison (control) group. PEAK Plus Groups: - PEAK-Only: Families whose fourth grader participates in the PEAK student education program at school.
- Financial Incentive-Only: Families whose fourth grader doesn’t receive the PEAK program at school but who do receive a financial reward from SCE for reducing their electricity usage during peak hours (2 to 6 pm) on high demand days. These are called “PEAK Plus Days”, and this group will be notified one day prior. The financial incentive is comprised of a credit on the families’ SCE bills for every kWh of electricity they reduce on PEAK Plus Days, compared with their average from the previous five days*. If families do not reduce their electricity usage below this average, there is no penalty and they are billed at their normal rate.
- PEAK AND Financial Incentive: Families who receive both variables – they have a fourth grader participating in the PEAK program at school and they receive the financial incentive from SCE for reducing energy consumption on PEAK Plus Days (as described in #2).
- Comparison: Families with fourth graders who receive neither the PEAK program at school nor the financial incentive. This group provides comparison data.
Electricity consumption data was collected for all four groups throughout 2008. At the conclusion of the study an independent evaluator compiled and analyzed the data. PEAK Plus Days - These are days when electricity is expected to be in short supply. Families are asked to make a special effort to conserve electricity between 2 and 6 pm on these days. PEAK Plus Days will help measure how families respond to education and financial incentives.
| | How did the project get started? In the late 1970’s, The Energy Coalition’s Executive Director, John Phillips, developed and implemented the first PEAK program at the Top of the World School in Laguna Beach, California. Three years later, the families whose children had participated in PEAK had reduced their energy usage by 9% in comparison to similar households in the city where no child had participated in the program. Previous research and The Energy Coalition’s experience with PEAK suggests that when children are empowered and encouraged to become their own household’s “Smart Energy Manager”, they greatly influence their families’ energy usage. Since the PEAK program was revamped and introduced into southern California schools in 1998, parents and teachers have reported its impact on student learning and behavior. This type of qualitative feedback is invaluable, yet there is also a need for quantitative data which supports the correlation between student education and positive household energy behaviors (like conservation, and decreasing the use of high-energy appliances during peak times). Such data will help to substantiate the value of education for achieving household energy savings. Thus, in 2005 at The Energy Coalition’s Aspen Accord policy forum participants agreed further research was needed to quantify this relationship between energy education and energy consumption. What are the benefits? ~Families who participate in the program gain knowledge, reduce their energy usage, and save money. ~Southern California Edison will obtain data on the effect of one of its proposed residential price incentive programs. ~The Energy Coalition will obtain data on the effect of its PEAK program on household energy use. ~California residents benefit from this cooperative effort to conserve and shift electricity usage from peak demand times, which helps to alleviate shortages and helps the environment. How does this fit into the California State Energy Action Plan? The data from PEAK Plus will likely support education as an integral component of the utility companies’ energy efficiency and demand response portfolios. Energy efficiency and demand response have finally become recognized as crucial elements for meeting the state’s energy goals, and customer education is crucial for achieving any successful energy efficiency or demand response program.
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