Market Strategies International (MSI), a leading full-service custom research and strategic consulting firm, announced findings from a new study focused on public perceptions of the energy industry and its ability to balance energy supply and environmental responsibilities.
The MSI study, conducted amongst more than 1,000 consumers in the United States, found that the public is intensely interested, but not particularly well-informed, about the current energy situation in the U.S. and the solutions needed to address energy needs in the future. The critical implication for energy companies is that they face a challenging road ahead concerning public and legislative battles to advance their goals.
"Meeting the significant challenges that lie ahead where energy demand and environmental concerns intersect will require mutual understanding and a shared set of assumptions between the public and the energy industry," says Jack Lloyd, Vice President of MSI's Energy Team and lead author of the study. "Right now, however, there are significant gaps between what the public believes about energy and the environment, and the reality of the situation. Industry and consumers currently are not speaking the same language," notes Lloyd.
One of the primary objectives of the MSI study was the development of an Energy/Environment (E2) Index, similar to the Consumer Confidence Index, to measure and track public perceptions of the industry's performance in balancing its economic and environmental roles. While 100 would represent a "perfect score" on the index, the energy industry is currently rated at 44 overall.
"There's certainly room for improvement in public perceptions," states Lloyd. "In many respects," adds Andrew Cober, MSI's Research Director for the study, "the energy industry is a victim of its own success. Electric utilities, coal companies and oil and natural gas suppliers have reliably delivered energy to consumers for decades, so the public has not really been educated on how the industry meets growing demand while working to protect the environment." "Now, among other issues," notes Cober, "we face tough choices with respect to access to natural resources, rising energy costs, needed infrastructure upgrades, a renewed focus on environmentalism and concerns over climate change. The days of letting energy take care of itself seem to be over."
The survey findings indicate that 33% of the public is "very interested" in environmental issues, but only 15% feel "very informed." "This isn't solely an issue for traditional energy suppliers," says Lloyd. "Currently, the public overestimates the amount of electricity being generated from renewable sources, such as wind and solar, by 400%. That puts an unrealistically high expectation on these resources to solve the challenge of growing demand. Conversely, consumers underestimate the amount of electricity generated from coal by about 50%, and their perception is that coal use will be decreasing in the coming decades, while the Department of Energy (DOE) projects it to increase for the next 30 years" notes Lloyd.
Additionally, the public gives the energy industry no credit for improving environmental performance over time. MSI's survey shows that on average, the public sees the electric power, coal and oil and natural gas industries as performing about the same as they were a decade ago with respect to the environment. States Cober, "Directional drilling, reformulated gasoline, major reductions in particulate emissions in electricity generation, along with other important achievements in balancing energy production and usage with environmental responsibility, are going largely unrecognized by the energy-using public."
Additionally, notes Lloyd, "According to the DOE, electric utilities account for almost three-fourths of all voluntary actions taken so far to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions in the US, but the public is completely unaware of this effort."
