Want fewer power plants? Make outdoor lighting more efficient

New standards for outdoor lighting efficiency could help the US reduce its energy use by the equivalent of the output of three to six new 1,000-megawatt power plants.

The proposed changes were agreed to this week by lighting manufacturers and several other organisations.

“This agreement marks a breakthrough in our approach to outdoor lighting that will save money, cut pollution and reduce our electricity use,” said Lane Burt, manager of building energy policy at the Natural Resources Defense Council. “Increasing lighting efficiency will help cut down on costs on lighting our parking lots, highways and even local roads — everywhere people drive and park their cars. Now it’s time for Congress to finalise the legislation and for the Department of Energy to begin working to improve our outdoor lighting standards throughout the country.”

The proposed changes will phase out the least efficient outdoor lighting products by the end of 2012, transitioning to new lighting products that are better for the environment and less costly to run. For example, new outdoor lights will be required to have a sensor that will turn them off during daylight hours, putting an end to wasteful streetlight operation during the day. New parking lot lights must be capable of being dimmed, which can cut their energy use in half.

The agreement also directs the US Department of Energy (DOE) to develop even better standards by 2013.

If enacted by Congress as new legislation, the new standards would reduce US energy use for lighting by about 24 billion to 42 billion kilowatt-hours a year.

The proposed new standards have been agreed to by the National Electrical Manufacturer’s Association (NEMA), Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E) and several energy efficiency organisations, including the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE),  the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), the Alliance to Save Energy, and the Appliance Standards Awareness Project (ASAP).

“This agreement establishes modest initial standards for outdoor lighting equipment, but paves the way for big savings if DOE does a good job when setting revised efficiency standards,” stated Steven Nadel, executive director of the ACEEE. “Only a minority of fixtures on the market today is affected by the initial standards; much larger savings will occur if the revised DOE standards move the average fixture to performance levels met by the better fixtures now on the market.”

“The agreement will also improve lighting quality from outdoor fixtures, since the most stringent standards apply to fixtures with high glare and light trespass,” added Jennifer Amann, the director of the ACEEE’s buildings programme. “Standards are less stringent for fixtures with better glare and trespass control.”