Climate for Action: Save Energy, Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Some Cash by Switching Your Light Bulbs
Posted on July 14th, 2009 - 3:30 PMDo you have ENEGRY STAR light bulbs in your home? ENERGY STAR light bulbs are light bulbs that conserve energy and wear a label that says ENERGY STAR on them. Compared to an incandescent light bulb, an ENERGY STAR light bulb uses up to 75% less energy. These light bulbs conserve energy and therefore reduce the greenhouse gas emissions associated with energy use. In fact, by replacing just one incandescent light bulb with an ENERGY STAR light bulb you can save 400 pounds of greenhouse gases from entering into the atmosphere! So, let’s make an impact by using ENERGY STAR light bulbs in our homes, not only will we be helping the environment, but these light bulbs will also save our families some money. Some ENERGY STAR light bulbs last ten times longer than incandescent light bulbs and will save $30 over the course of their lifetimes. Therefore, by using ENERGY STAR light bulbs, we are able to save energy, greenhouse gas emissions from entering into the atmosphere and some cash! Encourage your friends and family to use ENERGY STAR light bulbs so that they can also be a part of these savings. Let them know that by acting together we can make a difference. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, if every American replaced just one light bulb with an ENERGY STAR light bulb, we would save enough energy to light three million homes for a year, we would save more than $600 million in energy costs in a year, and we would reduce greenhouse gases emissions equivalent to taking 800,000 cars off the road. Who knew that such a simple task like replacing a light bulb could make such a difference! Become a climate ambassador in your community and take the ENERGY STAR pledge today! . Do you have any products in your home that help conserve energy? If so what are they and how do they help benefit our environment?
About the author: Michelle Gugger graduated from Rutgers University in 2008. She is currently spending a year of service at EPA’s Region 3 Office in Philadelphia, PA as an AmeriCorps VISTA.
Tags: Climate Ambassador, energy star, light bulbs
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Question of the Week
July 14th, 2009 at 4:37 pm
I have solar garden lights and a little solar panel that I use to charge AA Batteries.
[Reply]
Michelle reply on July 15, 2009 4:16 pm:
I think that’s so awesome. Finding renewable energy sources are even better than using energy conserving products.
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July 17th, 2009 at 2:21 pm
Lighting is approximately 8.8% of residential electricity use (DOE 2001, http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/recs/recs2001/enduse2001/enduse2001.html). Residential energy use is approximately 33% of total electricity production (http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/electricity/epa/epates.html), so residential lighting is approximately 8.8×33=2.9% of US production. Changing every lightbulb in the US to CFL will reduce residential lighting to 0.7% of US production…
First, I don’t see the utilities significantly changing production based upon a drop of 2.2%, especially as I expect other uses will more than consume that “savings”. Second, if we factor in the actual use of fossil fuels to generate electricity in the US, the “emissions savings” becomes even smaller.
Overall, if everyone on the Titanic had a bucket and bailed as though their lives depended on it, do you think the ship would have sunk?
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Peter Banwell, EPA reply on July 17, 2009 5:06 pm:
Hi,
at Energy Star we believe that while each action may seem small the collective action of individuals can have a significant impact. In 2007 our programs, including CFL lighting, reduced energy bills by 16 billion dollars and cut greenhouse gas emissions by over 42 million metric tons.
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July 18th, 2009 at 1:43 pm
Did you know lightbulbs can be made to last 10 years? But If corporations did that they’d only have to produce one lot every ten years. That’s why they’re happy the population keeps on growing so there will always be plenty of new customers, even if lightbulbs do last longer, the mountains of garbage will keep on growing and spreading right along with the “healthy” growing economy ( ! )
“A growing economy on a shrinking planet has no future.”
(from “If Saving the Earth”
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July 19th, 2009 at 2:26 pm
Hello everyone,
This is a fantastic opportunity to explore ways to save this world and more specifically exchange our idealisms. According to me not only is using non-renewble source of energy like solar, wind, geothermal is very useful to save our mother earth but also creating an awareness amongst people to do so will give our spirits a boost to use these alternatives. In Maharahtra - India [the place where I live] Municipal Corporations have made it mandatory for setting up solar water heating systems for residential areas I personally think if in such ways if governments take initiative in this direction we will certainly overcome various problems which we face in our day to day lives e.g. increasing prices of fuels, delayed rains, extreme heat, etc.
Thank you for this golden opportunity. We with the aid of this sort of blogs will certainly change way of thinking of people and secure the future of not only ours but also of upcoming generations and our earth.
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July 22nd, 2009 at 1:52 pm
Great article.
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July 26th, 2009 at 4:55 pm
These same power compact used in Energy Star lighting are now found as SHO (Super High Output) and these SHO in 6400 Kelvin lamps are now being widely used for Green House applications and planted aquariums due to their high plant growth potential, all the while using much less electricity.
These lights along with LED are better lighting choices for high lighting needs over traditional high wattage consuming lights
Reference:
http://www.americanaquariumproducts.com/Aquarium_Lighting.html
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September 25th, 2009 at 8:35 am
Energy efficient light bulbs are the easiest first step consumers and businesses can take towards reducing their energy consumption. Products have gotten light years better in the past few years and, in my eyes, indisputably better for 99% of applications. Both CFL and LED light bulbs run much cooler than incandescent bulbs, use energy much more efficiently, and do offer saving on your electricity bill. I am a vendor of energy efficient bulbs, so perhaps I am a bit biased, but I don’t know why everyone doesn’t switch today.
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November 22nd, 2009 at 3:33 pm
Everyone should use Energy Efficient Bulbs and make an effort to get the enviornmental issue across.
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