1. Pandemic and bills: The impact of COVID-19 on energy usage of schools in South Africa
- Author
-
J.A. Samuels, Marthinus J. Booysen, and S.S. Grobbelaar
- Subjects
Occupancy ,bepress|Engineering ,Natural resource economics ,Smart meter ,Energy (esotericism) ,Geography, Planning and Development ,engrXiv|Engineering|Electrical and Computer Engineering|Power and Energy ,Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law ,Article ,School responses ,Carry (investment) ,bepress|Engineering|Electrical and Computer Engineering ,Pandemic ,engrXiv|Engineering|Civil and Environmental Engineering ,Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment ,bepress|Engineering|Electrical and Computer Engineering|Power and Energy ,COVID-19 ,Differential (mechanical device) ,Energy usage ,School energy profiles ,School electricity ,Base load power plant ,engrXiv|Engineering ,bepress|Engineering|Civil and Environmental Engineering ,engrXiv|Engineering|Electrical and Computer Engineering ,Carbon footprint ,Business - Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic continues to wreak havoc on global operations and economies. Inadvertently, lock-downs and working from home have reduced the daily carbon footprints of inter alia transport and office buildings. A beneficial consequence of carbon footprint reductions is the ability to measure the differential demand of occupants, to benchmark the base load of buildings, and identify opportunities for efficiency improvements. In this paper we evaluate the change in energy demand in five public schools in South Africa with changes in occupancy due to the COVID-19-imposed lockdowns. We make recommendations to carry these savings into the everyday operation of the schools, and estimate the savings for forthcoming closures.
- Published
- 2021