British Columbians are sleeping in more, showering less and almost doubling their usage of streaming services since the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to BC Hydro.
A new report released Monday by the hydro company finds B.C. residents have permanently shifted how they use electricity at home three years after the pandemic was declared. The report’s data was pulled from an online survey conducted Feb. 23-27, when market researcher Majid Khoury gathered responses from 800 people.
Here are BC Hydro’s findings:
Seventy per cent of respondents said some aspect of their daily routine remains changed since March 2020, and to BC Hydro, that makes sense.
It says while residential electricity usage is at "normal levels" for this time of year, weekday hydro use is still peaking slightly later in the morning and earlier in the evening — much like it did in the first months of the pandemic.
More people working from home is a likely contributor. Remote work means people don't have to commute to the office, allowing them to sleep later and get started on household tasks, like cooking and cleaning, earlier in the day.
BC Hydro encourages customers to conserve energy by using energy-saving features on home office equipment, cooking with smaller appliances, switching to a heat pump to heat in the winter and cool in the summer, and tracking electricity use via MyHydro.
Read the full report here.
Over 70% of British Columbians have said some aspect of their daily routine remains changed – most significantly on weekdays – three years since the #COVID19 pandemic was declared. Read our latest report: https://t.co/kRy36XoPQm pic.twitter.com/C5ZPaBEZr4
— BC Hydro (@bchydro) March 13, 2023
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