WWF urges EU to ban all energy wasting light bulbs

Brussels, Belgium - WWF welcomes the ban on inefficient incandescent light bulbs, coming into effect in the EU from 1 September, but it says that equally energy wasting light bulbs like standard halogens should also be removed from the market.

The phase-out ban voted by Member States in December 2008 will remove all conventional incandescent bulbs from the shelves by 2012 and save 15 million tons of CO2 annually by 2020, equivalent to the entire current electricity consumption of Romania per year.

“Getting rid of incandescents is a no-brainer, but halogens are nearly as wasteful: we need to see the EU push innovative solutions into the market.” says Mariangiola Fabbri, Senior Energy Policy Officer at WWF’s European Policy Office.

The traditional incandescent bulb is one of the least efficient ways of producing light, along with the standard halogen. It disperses 95% of the energy it uses. The alternatives to energy wasting bulbs are most efficient halogen bulbs, compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) and LED (light emitting diodes) bulbs.

WWF together with other organisations has launched a web portal to inform consumers about the most energy-efficient appliances and lighting equipment across Europe (www.topten.info).

“Consumers need to receive correct and simple information about the many alternatives already available in the market”, says Fabbri. “Simple information on packaging and recycling collection systems at points of sale are crucial to achieving real savings and changing consumers’ habits”, says Fabbri.

A bright idea - lightbulbs go green

197/09 On 1 September the EU starts the mandatory phase out of 100W and frosted incandescent (or old fashioned) lightbulbs.

This new legislation to cut wasted energy and high electricity bills was agreed by EU Member States last December with support of the UK.

The UK has been at the forefront of efforts to cut down energy-inefficient products which cost people more money to run and are bad for the environment as they have higher carbon emissions.

A voluntary initiative to phase out old fashioned bulbs started in 2007 with the keen support of a number of UK energy suppliers and retailers.

Environment Minister Dan Norris said:

“We can no longer rely on light bulbs which waste 95 per cent of their energy as heat. We are glad the EU has put this measure in place to stop the waste of energy and money from old fashioned high energy bulbs. The UK has had a successful voluntary initiative in place for a few years, and now the rest of the EU will follow suit on a mandatory basis.

“This is great news for people who will pay less in electricity and even better news for the planet, as this will amount to 1 million tonnes of saved CO₂ per year by 2020. ”

Energy efficient bulbs now come in every size, shape and design, with dimmable versions and bayonet and screw fittings. The technology in low energy bulbs has improved greatly and now the variety and choice is there for every household or business.

TOP 10 LIGHTBULBS MYTHS

Aren’t they expensive?

Energy efficient Compact Fluorescent Lamps (CFLs) have come down in price and will continue to do so. Some new CFLs are available at similar prices to old fashioned bulbs (50p in some shops). Energy efficient lamps save money, up to £3-6 per lamp per year according to the Energy Saving Trust, and so the pay back can be seen in months. They also last longer so you don’t need to buy them as often. Halogen ‘look-alike’ bulbs are now available to fit in standard sockets, though these lamps do not last as long as CFLs and only offer a 25 – 40 per cent of savings compared to traditional bulbs.

They don't fit all fittings.

Yes, they do. Lamps are now much smaller than previous CFL ones, and come in very similar sizes and shapes to incandescent lamps. They come in all bayonet and screw fittings now. Where fittings are really small, halogen ‘look-alike’ lamps are available, although these do not offer the same energy savings. Dimmable versions are also available.

They don't last as long as I thought

CFLs should last longer than incandescent lamps, though towards the end of life they fade over time rather than blow. Under EU legislation there will be a minimum guaranteed lifetime.

They take ages to warm up and give off dull light

Many lamps come on instantly and no lamp should come on later than a second or two after flicking the switch. The light now is flicker free as although CFL bulbs used to operate at mains frequency (50Hz) they are now designed to operate at 1000 times that frequency. The light is bright and clear and test conducted by the Energy Saving Trust suggest that the majority of people cannot tell the difference between the light of a new CFL and an incandescent bulb.

They won't save me money

CFL low energy bulbs save 80% energy compared to an old fashioned bulb. According to the Energy Saving Trust this can be £3-6 per lamp off your energy bills.

I can't recycle them

All local Councils provide recycling facilities for CFLs and some retailers will take them back. Councils are looking at what they can do to make it easier to recycle these bulbs. With all new products the end of life recycling can take a while to become widespread, but this is happening now and being taken very seriously by local and national government.

Haven’t there been health concerns?

EU health experts concluded that there is not enough evidence to suggest that modern lamps can aggravate epilepsy or migraines, but Defra and DoH have worked really closely with groups representing those with specific sight and light-sensitive skin conditions to minimise any adverse effects from the use of CFLs.

They contain mercury.

The evidence shows that the amount of mercury in lamps is less than the mercury that would be otherwise released into the atmosphere by coal-fire power generation to produce the energy used by an incandescent lamp. The mercury cannot escape from an intact lamp and, even if the lamp should be broken, the very small amount of mercury contained in a single, modern CFL is most unlikely to cause any harm. Safe disposal of a smashed bulb is on our website at http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/business/products/lightbulbs.htm.

Getting rid of old fashioned light bulbs limits my choice

CFL bulbs are not the only ones on the markets. Halogen bulbs that fit into standard lighting sockets will remain on sale too although these lamps don’t save as much energy as CFLs.

I will need to change all my light bulbs as a result of these measures

No-one will be forced to change their light bulbs, or their fittings, and retailers will be able to sell on existing stocks. The EU measure, under the Eco-design for Energy-using Products Framework Directive restricts the manufacture and import into the EU of 100W and frosted incandescent lamps from 1 September, with a phase out of lamps of lower wattage by 2012.

Nuclear power? No point, says new report

A new report from the Green Party makes a powerful case that nuclear power has no rationale in terms of either economics or helping the fight against dangerous climate change.

In Nuclear Power? No Point! the Green Party's spokesperson on trade and industry, Darren Johnson AM, reviews recent developments and argues that:

• Nuclear power provides less than 4% of UK energy - which is far less than could be saved by energy-efficiency measures that would cut people's fuel bills.
• New nuclear stations will not help the fight against climate change because major CO2 reductions are needed in the next ten years. New nuclear power stations could not be built fast enough.
• Massive investment in renewables could deliver the necessary short-term CO2 cuts - but "feeding cash to the nuclear delusion" could help starve the renewables industry of some of the investment and skilled personnel it needs to grow rapidly.
• The nuclear industry's current financial problems cast serious doubt on its ability to deliver new powerstations anyway.

Darren Johnson, who is currently chair of the London Assembly and Green Party candidate for Lewisham Deptford, said today:

"The industry that was going to produce electricity 'too cheap to meter' has landed us with massive costs for handling its dangerous waste. Now the nuclear industry can't even give us a reliable quote for the cost of a power station. The current projects in Finland and France are experiencing safety concerns, long delays and big overspends.

"There's no point expecting nuclear to solve the climate crisis, because new stations couldn't be built fast enough to help achieve the big CO2 reductions we need to make in the next ten years - which mature renewables could deliver.

"There is no point even considering nuclear power, because demand-reduction measures could easily save far more power than nuclear could generate. And the latest studies argue convincingly that green energy sources with a European smart grid could provide all the power we need."

Nuclear "offers nothing for the recession, and too few jobs per megawatt anyway"

In Nuclear Power? No Point! Mr Johnson also draws attention to nuclear power's poor jobs-per-megawatt ratio. He said today:
"We urgently need a Green New Deal to get us out of the recession and start building the sustainable economy of the twenty-first century. We could create hundreds of thousands of jobs in green energy in the next decade. Nuclear power can play no part in that because it takes far too long to build nuclear power stations compared with windfarms and other green measures. Wind energy sustains something like twelve times as many jobs per unit of power as nuclear does."

Government sets out “Road to Copenhagen”

World leaders must agree to cut global greenhouse gas emissions by at least half by 2050 when they meet at the Copenhagen climate conference in December, the Government has said.

The Prime Minister said that the clock is ticking and a dramatic cut in emissions levels over the next four decades will be necessary to keep global average temperature increases to two degrees centigrade or less.

The target is one of the goals set out today in the Road to Copenhagen - the Government’s manifesto for the conference.

Gordon Brown said there were two targets nations must agree on. The first is to ensure global emissions peak by 2020 and are cut by at least 50% by 2050 compared to 1990 levels. The second is that developed countries must agree to reduce their emissions by 80% to allow developing countries room for growth.

The PM said:

“An ambitious agreement in Copenhagen is certainly achievable. And yet it remains far from certain. We cannot allow this to drift - when every year of delay retards investment, locks us into a higher emissions pathway, worsens the impacts on the poorest and most vulnerable, and increases the costs of eventual reduction.

“Copenhagen is twenty-three weeks away. When historians look back on this critical moment, let them say, not that we were the generation that failed our children; but that we had the courage, and the will, to succeed.”

The Prime Minister and Energy and Climate Secretary Ed Miliband visited London Zoo this morning to launch the manifesto.

Speaking at the launch, Mr Brown pledged that the UK will play its part in providing financial aid for climate mitigation in the developing world, and urged countries to work together on a global figure of around $100 billion per year by 2020.

He also called for aviation and maritime emissions to be part of the Copenhagen agreement, and for forestry to become part of the carbon trading market in a bid to prevent deforestation.

Hundreds of revellers to form big 'NO' at Glastonbury in protest at airport expansion

Hundreds of pilots, stewardesses, train drivers and passengers will attempt to form the biggest human "NO" ever seen at Glastonbury festival at midday on Saturday, in protest at the government's plans for airport expansion.

The motley cabin crew will assemble on the Greenpeace field at midday on Saturday, amid claims that the growth of the airline industry could make it impossible for the UK to beat climate change. Aviation is now one of the fastest growing sources of CO2 emissions in the UK, representing 13 per cent of Britain's impact on the climate. (1)

The protestors - who are being encouraged (but not required) to come in uniform - will gather at 12pm on Saturday 27th June on the Greenpeace Airplot - an aviation themed field complete with an "out of control tower" and a long runway. The best outfit will win a duty-free prize, and as many people as possible are needed to make this a world record.

Greenpeace aviation campaigner Anna Jones, who is running the event, said:

"We're planning to send a message to Gordon Brown right from the heart of Glastonbury festival. His obsession with airport expansion just doesn't make sense, because flying is ten times more damaging to the climate than taking the train. That's why I'm meeting up with hundreds of other people to say "NO" to a third runway at Heathrow.

"I don't want our countryside to suffer more floods, heatwaves and droughts. We must get our emissions down, which means the government must drop its airport expansion programme right now."

Hundreds of people are expected to form the big NO - which will then be photographed from the 'out of control tower' - which doubles up as a climbing wall for people to try out.

Flying is one of the fastest growing sources of greenhouse gas emissions in the UK, and emissions are set to treble if government expansion plans go ahead. Flights from and within the UK account for between 6-8 per cent of our total CO2 emissions, while the Government admits that aviation's true effect is at least 13 per cent of the UK's climate impact because greenhouse gases create more global warming when emitted at altitude.

Kingsnorth stand-off ends

A dramatic stand-off at Kingsnorth power station in Kent has ended after four Greenpeace campaigners, who boarded a coal freighter bound for the power station last night, came down from the foremast after being served with an injunction.

Greenpeace volunteers intercepted the freighter using rigid inflatable speedboats just after midnight this morning. As the ship sped towards Kingsnorth the campaigners attached climbing ladders to the vessel and scaled the 15 metre hull.

Sarah Shoraka, speaking just before leaving the freighter, said: "We climbed onto this ship, and stayed onboard throughout the night and all day, because coal is the most climate-damaging fuel known to man. If we keep burning coal, we can't beat climate change.

"But Ed Miliband's new policies would still allow Eon to build the dirtiest new power station in Britain for thirty years."

Land next to the existing plant at Kingsnorth has been earmarked for the construction of the first new coal-fired power station in Britain for 30 years. The highly controversial plans have sparked a series of protests, but this is the first time a coal shipment to the site has been blocked and boarded. The Government claims a new Kingsnorth plant will be cleaner, but in reality under the new policy, announced in April, it would still pump three-quarters of its emissions into the atmosphere for years to come - six million tonnes of CO2 every year.

The Greenpeace members who were on board the ship say by stopping the coal cargo being burned they were protecting people and property around the world from the devastating effects of climate change.

UK decisions on coal have an international impact. This year's international meetings on climate change, designed to prepare the groundwork for the summit in Copenhagen this December, have been uniformly unproductive, and the success of the Copenhagen talks is now highly uncertain. Brown will need to do everything in his power to give the UK and EU negotiating positions political and scientific credibility, both with his policies and his presence, if there is to be a chance of a meaningful agreement.

The G8 meeting in Italy on the July 8^th provides a key opportunity to go into Copenhagen with some progress having been made. Greenpeace urges the Prime Minister to seize this opportunity to show some leadership and rescue his legacy.

(DFT) White Van Man goes Green

Van buyers will find it easier to cut emissions and save money due to a new van CO2 data base launched by Transport Secretary Andrew Adonis today.

The online database - the biggest of its kind in Europe - has been compiled by the Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA), Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), and Department for Transport (DfT). It allows users to search for new van models on the UK market and compare their CO2 emissions and the fuel consumption.

Vans make up around 15% of road transport emissions in the UK and their emissions are rising at the highest rate of any road vehicle. If everybody buying a new van bought the most fuel efficient model in its class the average buyer could save up to 17% on both CO2 emissions and fuel costs.

Launching the database at the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership's annual conference in London today, Transport Secretary Andrew Adonis said:
"It's important to help motoring consumers make the right choice, both for themselves and for the environment.

"This database is good news for van buyers - it gives them access to emissions and fuel consumption information that could well shape the van they choose, as well as enable them to cut emissions and save money.

"At a time when the Government is working hard to create a stable financial environment to encourage long-term investment in the motoring industry this tool is also good news for van producers by stimulating interest and demand in the models they make."

Speaking on behalf of the industry, SMMT chief executive Paul Everitt said:

"Van makers are all committed to providing information that will help buyers make better informed choices and this database provides a level playing field for easy comparison. We believe that our efforts in assisting government departments compile this information will not only impact positively on tailpipe CO2 emissions but will also help buyers select the most economical vehicle they need for their business."

The database can be accessed on the Business Link website alongside tips for van buyers on how to choose the right van for their needs and how to save fuel costs from the way they use the vehicle

(DEFRA) £11m to protect our seas from climate change

A five-year, £11million study into the effects of climate change on Britain's seas has been announced as scientists warn of more acidic seas affecting the food chain.

Ocean acidity, caused by increased amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the sea, has risen 30 per cent in the last 200 years, faster than any time in the last 65million years, with serious implications for sealife and our climate, according to a new report.

The sea absorbs CO2 in the atmosphere but over time as emissions have increased it has become more acidic, which means not only will it absorb less CO2 in future but that corals, plankton, shellfish and other vital links in the food chain will be under threat.

Now Defra is jointly funding a major research programme with the Natural Environment Research Councils (NERC). It will concentrate on the North East Atlantic, Antarctic and Arctic oceans and study the effects of acidification on biodiversity, habitats, species and wider socio-economic implications.

Huw Irranca-Davies, Minister for the Natural & Marine Environment, said: "Ocean acidification will be one of the biggest environmental concerns of this century, with major and far-reaching impacts.

"We need to understand much more about the scale and nature of the effect CO2 is having on our oceans and marine life."

The report by the Marine Climate Change Impacts Partnership, published today, also highlights how many small effects of climate change are being magnified through important links with the marine environment, and how distant events such as melting Arctic sea ice may affect people, wildlife and the environment here. For more information go to http://www.mccip.org.uk/elr.

The ocean acidification research programme is expected to run for five years, with NERC funding £7.7million and Defra contributing £2.5million in the first three years with a provisional commitment of £800,000 over two more years. For more details of the UK acidification programme go to: http://www.nerc.ac.uk/research/themes/earthsystem/events/ocean-acidification.asp.