November 18, 2009—Lighting equipment manufacturers and energy efficiency organizations announced their agreement on November 3 on a legislative package that would create new minimum efficiency standards for many types of outdoor lighting products. If enacted by Congress as new legislation, the agreed-upon standards would reduce U.S. lighting energy use by about 24 to 42 billion kWh annually, they say.
The agreement was reached by the National Electrical Manufacturer’s Association (NEMA); energy efficiency organizations including the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE), Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), Alliance to Save Energy, and the Appliance Standards Awareness Project (ASAP); and a major utility, Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E).
The agreement establishes initial efficiency standards for outdoor pole-mounted lighting fixtures, then calls on the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to quickly set revised standards. Covered fixtures primarily light roadways and parking lots. In addition, the agreement requires double-ended halogen lamps (a type of high-wattage incandescent lamp that is used outdoors) to meet specific efficiency requirements and prohibits sales of mercury vapor lamps as of 2016. New mercury vapor fixtures and ballasts were prohibited in a 2005 law, so this next step completes the transition away from mercury vapor towards more efficient types of light.
ACEEE says the agreement would improve the lighting quality of outdoor fixtures, since the most stringent standards apply to fixtures with high glare and light trespass. The organization estimates that the initial standards would save about 12 billion kWh/year. The revised standards could increase savings by 12 to 30 billion kWh/year for total savings of as much as 42 billion kWh/year (or roughly enough power to meet the total needs of more than 3.6 million typical U.S. households).
