Tabuchi, H. (2023, August 1). It’s Official: Stores Can No Longer Sell Most Incandescent Lights. Retrieved August 25, 2023 from https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/01/climate/incandescent-light -bulb-ban-leds.html
It’s the end of an era for incandescent lights, at least in most of the country. New standards mean that lightbulbs must produce at least 45 lumens per watt which effectively will ban incandescent lights. LED lights have already begun to reduce electricity demands and in turn, reduce greenhouse gas emissions. There are expected to be significant environmental and financial impacts as a result of this decision.
This is environmentally significant as LED lightbulbs are incredibly more efficient than incandescent ones. One expert says it is comparable to upgrading from a car that gets 25 miles to the gallon to one that gets 130. Obviously, such efficiency will lead to reduced carbon emissions but it also has financial implications that are positive. LED light prices have dropped dramatically making them much more affordable when they used to be far more than incandescent, also using less energy takes the financial burden of high utility bills off of many struggling families. This case also shows that the US government is willing to take litigation actions to protect the environment. Obviously it may be beneficial to force people to convert to all environmentally friendly alternatives, such as low flow shower heads or electric stoves there is the barrier of the possibility that some people cannot afford to replace their appliances or other possessions. As often happens there is a conflict between that is best for the environment and what is best financially, in the long term we must choose the environment and cases like this show we aren’t afraid to take necessary action.
I agree that LED lights should be the only type of light that should be used as they are way more efficient than incandescent lights and they emit less heat. Although it is dangerous to believe that advances in technology in the future will help solve environmental issues in the world right now, I genuinely believe that general appliances will improve in efficiency, in both usage and production. Judging by the advancements in the last three decades, or even less, there is very fast improvements in technology around the world. Do you know if there are any other countries doing something similar for lightbulbs?
Thanks for your comment. Yes, it is a very international shift, half of the global residential lighting market uses LED lights.
I never knew how much of a difference in efficiency that different types of bulbs could have. This is really shocking to me, and I feel that the differences between LEds and incandescent bulbs is something most people had even considered.
Thanks for your comment. I agree it’s very surprising to learn how we can limit our carbon footprint in ways we hadn’t even considered.
It’s great to see that we can move to a more environmentally friendly source while keeping the product great. LED lights seem like the future! I also agree that moving more to LED light highlights steps we are taking to protect our environment. Do you think this will spread farther than just the United States? Possibly bigger countries could incorporate them like India and China?
Thanks for your comment. It already has started to spread to other countries, and I do think it will continue to reach new ones.