Have you ever felt unnecessarily cold in a shopping mall during the sweltering summer? Despite being known for having hot and humid weather, the air conditioning systems in Hong Kong constantly make indoor venues excessively cool, which could be seen as a waste. For example, while the Hong Kong government advises that the temperature of indoor venues should be kept around 23-26 degrees Celsius in summer, IFC mall’s room temperature could be as low as 15 degrees Celsius.
Reasons for the immense amount of AC usage
In the 70s, air conditioners started to be installed in residential buildings. With most people in Hong Kong using electric fans at that time, having an AC unit became a status symbol. Just like that, the AC market started to grow from then on. Creating an environment that favours customers is always one of the priorities for commercial buildings and shopping malls. They often do that by bringing coolness indoors with ACs for people to escape from the hot weather in Hong Kong, making their buildings consumer-friendly. During winter, it is also believed that some shops have intentionally turned the temperature of ACs down to boost the sales of winter items.
Another significant cause for excessive AC usage is the electricity supplying system in Hong Kong. High consumption non-residential users (e.g. commercial buildings, big shopping malls) of electricity are charged with regressive rates, meaning that after a certain threshold is reached, the cost of electricity decreases. In other words, the more electricity they use, the less they pay. This leads to more electricity used by large users in order to decrease their electricity bill.
Effects of excessive use of AC
Harmful gases like CFCs and carbon dioxide would be released into the air, contributing to global warming by destroying the ozone layer and increasing global temperature. Urban Heat Island Effect, where the city gets warmer than surrounding areas, occurs with a large amount of heat being generated by the ACs. A vicious cycle would occur as well: when more ACs are turned on, more heat is being released into the air. The more heat is released, the higher the temperature and the hotter the people would feel, resulting in more ACs being turned on. This will harm the environment immensely, building up to climate change.
Air conditioning can also be a health hazard if one is too dependent on it. There is a scarce amount of air cleaning involved in ACs, thus bacteria and pollutants from the outside air are often failed to filter. Some ACs also recycle the same air repeatedly, resulting in not only poor air circulation but no fresh air. Even worse, this may cause a faster spread of viruses.
What can we do?
Even though we are unable to resolve the situation overnight, decreasing the use of air conditioners at home could help decrease our carbon footprint. One way to start is to participate in the annual No Air Con Night organised by Green Sense, where people turn off their ACs for a night. With more and more people participating, we fight against the abuse of AC usage and create a greener community for Hong Kong.
Sources:
Writer: Jessica Leung
Editor: Charlotte Chow
Artists: Jennifer Pun & Joyce Liang
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