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[h=1]White House to Relax Energy Efficiency Rules for Light Bulbs[/h]
The Trump administration plans to significantly weaken federal rules that would have forced Americans to use much more energy-efficient light bulbs, a move that could contribute to greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming.
The proposed changes would eliminate requirements that effectively meant that most light bulbs sold in the United States — not only the familiar, pear-shaped ones, but several other styles as well — must be either LEDs or fluorescent to meet new efficiency standards.
The rules being weakened, which dated from 2007 and the administration of President George W. Bush and slated to start in the new year, would have all but ended the era of the incandescent bulb invented more than a century ago. Eliminating inefficient bulbs nationwide would save electricity equivalent to the output of at least 25 large power plants, enough to power all homes in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, according to an estimate by the The Natural Resources Defense Council.
Ok, what could possibly be the rationale for rolling the rules back? I can only think of two reasons: 1) A childish insistence that nobody is going to tell me what type of bulb to buy. 2) The Trump Administration's quest to bring America back to the 1950s.
From where I sit, this train has long left the station. Consumers like compact florescent and LED bulbs that have both vastly improved and come down radically in price, since the rule was made in 2007. Industry is also geared up to make the newer bulbs. There are now no advantages to the old bulbs.
I see nothing in rolling back the rule that makes America great. In fact, it makes us look idiotic. The new bulbs save consumers money and are better for the planet.
The Trump administration plans to significantly weaken federal rules that would have forced Americans to use much more energy-efficient light bulbs, a move that could contribute to greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming.
The proposed changes would eliminate requirements that effectively meant that most light bulbs sold in the United States — not only the familiar, pear-shaped ones, but several other styles as well — must be either LEDs or fluorescent to meet new efficiency standards.
The rules being weakened, which dated from 2007 and the administration of President George W. Bush and slated to start in the new year, would have all but ended the era of the incandescent bulb invented more than a century ago. Eliminating inefficient bulbs nationwide would save electricity equivalent to the output of at least 25 large power plants, enough to power all homes in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, according to an estimate by the The Natural Resources Defense Council.
Ok, what could possibly be the rationale for rolling the rules back? I can only think of two reasons: 1) A childish insistence that nobody is going to tell me what type of bulb to buy. 2) The Trump Administration's quest to bring America back to the 1950s.
From where I sit, this train has long left the station. Consumers like compact florescent and LED bulbs that have both vastly improved and come down radically in price, since the rule was made in 2007. Industry is also geared up to make the newer bulbs. There are now no advantages to the old bulbs.
I see nothing in rolling back the rule that makes America great. In fact, it makes us look idiotic. The new bulbs save consumers money and are better for the planet.
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