Knowledge of the Problem of Fuel Poverty Among Local Government Authorities: In The Aspect of Local Energy Security

Abstract

The constant increase in energy demand among local communities, which is a natural consequence of the desire to improve the quality of life, as well as the ongoing economic growth and civilization progress, breeds a worrying problem of fuel poverty, which remains at a persistently high level. This phenomenon is particularly experienced by the inhabitants of farms, not only poor ones but also those more affluent. Research shows that this problem is not perceived as one of the aspects of fuel poverty, which determines the level of energy security in the local dimension. What's more, this phenomenon is unknown to many local authorities or has a low priority. There are also local governments, which notice this problem, but in the absence of appropriate definitions of fuel poverty and the lack of appropriate tools to study this phenomenon, they resolve it intuitively. In the article, the authors, therefore, focus on three objectives. The first is the attempt to define the concept of fuel poverty as an indicator of energy security at the local level. The second is to examine the degree of knowledge of fuel poverty among local authorities in selected Polish provinces. The third is to show ways to counteract the phenomenon of fuel poverty among the inhabitants of farms. The research problem posed in the article is of a theoretical and empirical nature. The applied research methods are: analysis, definition, synthesis, generalization and inference as well as quantitative and qualitative research methods. The research was conducted among farms in 438 counties in the following provinces: Masovian, Subcarpathian, Greater Poland and West Pomeranian in Poland. The topic of the article may help in the pragmatic dimension to develop an effective strategy of counteracting fuel poverty, thus strengthening local energy security, which will be able to be applied by local government units in the country.