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It's a common enough sight and one that can be witnessed every day in millions of homes

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across the European Union. But what many people don't realise is that domestic appliances

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like washing machines, dishwashers, fridges, televisions and DVD players consume almost

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as much electricity every year as all of the EU's factories, offices and industrial plants

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put together. In a European Union that now has over 450 million inhabitants, that adds

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up to an awful lot of power. It's the equivalent of around two thirds of a tonne of crude oil

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per person per year. As energy use is responsible for nearly 80% of the EU's greenhouse gas

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emissions, that's a reality we should all be taking very seriously indeed. Particularly

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as an awful lot of the energy consumed in Europe today is quite simply wasted. Around

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20% according to the European Commission. And households have a key role to play in

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tackling the problem. If you don't use energy efficient appliances or don't use energy efficient

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bulbs, you are wasting your money. And just for nothing. And it really should be very

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painful. It's like taking your euros, notes and just putting it on fire. So why do this?

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It's completely unnecessary because nobody is benefiting. Resources are limited. Whatever

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we do now when we waste resources, we deprive these resources for our kids or grandchildren.