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Jennifer Celestino, 29, of Buffalo, N.Y., said she might do more if she knew how much energy she was using compared with her neighbors. "If you had information that says, `Hey, your household uses more than the typical house in your ZIP code,' that would get my attention," said Celestino, a workforce analyst at an insurance company. Lacking hard data, nearly half of those questioned say they use somewhat or a lot less energy than others in their community, while only 9 percent think their consumption is above average. Overall energy use by people in the United States is four times the world average, according to the Energy Information Administration, but Americans use less energy per person than people in countries such as Canada, Norway and Iceland. Average energy use by Americans declined by about 9 percent from 2005 to 2009, largely because of increased efficiency of appliances and machinery, and the economic downturn, the EIA said. Dori Spaulding, a stay-at-home mom from Niceville, Fla., worries about high energy bills, particularly in the summer, but says her hometown "is a hot place and we have small kids." Her home windows are not as efficient as they should be, Spaulding said, but they aren't broken and "I don't have 10 grand to replace the windows." Spaulding, 33, said she and her husband, an Air Force pilot, have considered buying a hybrid or electric car. But for now they drive a minivan and station wagon. She said she needs the room for her two children and the triathlon club she leads, but acknowledged that the vehicles fit her lifestyle. "I think that Americans want what we want, and we want it now," she said. The survey was conducted from March 29 to April 25. It involved landline and cellphone interviews with 1,008 adults nationwide and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points. ___ Online: AP-NORC poll: Energy Information Administration:
http://www.apnorc.org/
http://www.eia.gov/
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