Human settlements

Energy efficiency

Phase-out of inefficient incandescent light bulbs

Working with the states and territories, the Australian Government will gradually phase out all inefficient incandescent light bulbs.

The first stage of the phase-out will be the introduction of an import restriction on inefficient incandescent bulbs used for general lighting purposes planned for November this year, as was announced on 5 June 2008.
For the full announcement see the Media release

The savings to the environment and the economy which the initiative will generate are considerable. Across the country, the move to more efficient lighting, such as compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs), is expected to save more than four terawatt hours of electricity (equivalent to decommissioning one of Australia's smaller coal-fired power stations), up to four million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions (equivalent to one million cars off the road) and more than $400 million per year - saving more than $50 per year per household.

Frequently Asked Questions

Details of the phase-out

QUESTION 1 - Why is the Australian Government phasing out inefficient light bulbs?

Lighting represents around 12 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions from households, and around 25 per cent of emissions from the commercial sector. The Australian Government recognises that this is an area where energy savings can be easily made by replacing inefficient incandescent lights with more cost-effective and energy efficient alternatives.

These energy efficient alternatives include compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) which use only 20 per cent of the electricity to produce the same amount of light. Using less energy means lower electricity bills and reduced greenhouse gas emissions - benefits to both individuals and the environment.

QUESTION 2 - How will the inefficient bulbs be phased out?

The Australian Government will implement the phase-out by introducing Minimum Energy Performance Standards (MEPS) for lighting products. MEPS* are minimum efficiency standards that products must meet in order to be sold in the Australian market. The phase-out will mean that once the measure is implemented, people will be unable to buy new incandescent bulbs to replace their old ones, but people will not be required to remove working incandescent bulbs.

MEPS are used for various product ranges, including refrigerators, freezers, washing machines and other household appliances.

More information about MEPS is available at: www.energyrating.gov.au

QUESTION 3 - Which bulbs will be phased out?

The Australian Government is targeting any light bulbs that have an efficiency level of less than 15 lumens per watt (lm/w). Lumens (lm) are a measure of light output and watts (w) are a measure of energy input.

The traditional pear-shaped bulbs are the least efficient - these bulbs waste 90 per cent of the energy they use, mainly as heat. They will be phased out first, with an import restriction expected to come into effect from November 2008, followed by a retail sale restriction from November 2009. More efficient types of incandescent bulbs - known as halogens will continue to be available, but the least efficient of this group will be phased out over time. Mains voltage (240V), and low voltage bulbs (12V - typically used in downlighting), are the common types of halogen bulb. Low voltage does not mean low energy use.

QUESTION 4 - Will streets lights and other public lighting be affected by the phase-out measure?

Most street and public lights do not use incandescent technology, so the phase-out will not affect them.

Street and road lighting in Australia is very efficient compared to other countries, however, the Government is working with industry and the relevant Australian Standards Committee to reduce the amount of energy used by street lights.

Available alternatives

QUESTION 5 - What is the alternative to inefficient incandescent light bulbs?

CFLs and halogen bulbs can be used in the vast majority of fittings that take common incandescent bulbs. CFLs are the more energy efficient option, however both are readily available on the market.

CFLs use the same technology as linear fluorescent tubes - common in our schools, hospitals and workplaces - but are designed for use in homes. Not only do CFLs only use around 20 per cent of the energy to produce the same amount of light as an incandescent light bulb, but they last between four and 10 times longer.

QUESTION 6 - What about special purpose bulbs?

Initially only traditional pear-shaped general purpose light bulbs will be phased out. Specialty bulbs such as oven lights, bathroom heat lamps, and medical lights will not be affected until viable, cost effective, and efficient alternatives are available.

There are different types of CFLs to suit most common applications in households, and new CFLs are being developed to suit some less common applications.

QUESTION 7 - Will CFLs work with dimmer switches?

There are CFLs available which are dimmable, however they may not work well with all existing dimmer controls. More dimmable CFLs will become available as the phase-out progresses.

Mains voltage halogen bulbs provide a more efficient dimmable alternative to common incandescent bulbs.

QUESTION 8 - Can CFLs be used with movement sensors, sunset switches, and timers?

Most of the technology used in movement sensors and other switches work with CFLs, but halogen bulbs are also an option.

QUESTION 9 - Will the phase-out affect touch lamps?

No. These types of lights should continue to work the same with CFLs.

QUESTION 10 - Are Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) also very efficient?

LEDs are another potentially efficient alternative to traditional pear-shaped incandescent bulbs, however LEDs for general lighting purposes are a new technology that is still being developed.

LEDs are part of a family of 'solid state' electronic components that only allow electricity to flow in one direction. They have the distinctive side effect of creating light when current is passed through them.

LEDs are currently used in countless applications including lighting displays in household appliances, mobile phone screens and traffic signals. Many lighting companies are developing LED bulbs for direct replacement into a range of fittings - some are already available, while many more are expected to be available in the next few years.

The benefits of LEDs include lifetimes of up to 100,000 hours and potentially very high efficiency levels. While some general lighting LEDs have issues with poor light quality and low light output, they are rapidly improving. The main barrier for the widespread adoption of LEDs is cost, but as the technology improves and demand increases, costs will come down.

LEDs have the most immediate potential in applications where the long life and hence very low replacement and maintenance schedules is of great benefit and offset the high initial capital cost, for example in car parks and other public area lighting.

Product quality

QUESTION 11 - Are CFLs available that produce a similar colour light to incandescent bulbs?

CFLs cover a range of desired colours including a close approximate of the 'warm' light of most incandescent bulbs, around 2700 degrees Kelvin. The Kelvin temperature of a lamp refers to the colour of the light it emits, and is a comparison to natural outdoor light (for example, sunlight at noon on a clear day is about 6000 degrees Kelvin). CFLs are available in five main colours:

QUESTION 12 - Is it better to leave CFLs on if you briefly vacate a room rather than switching them off, to both save energy and conserve its life?

There is a common misconception that more energy is used to switch a fluorescent light on and off than to leave it on when you leave a room.

There is an 'inrush' current when fluorescent lights are turned on that is higher than the current drawn during normal operation. As this additional current is only drawn for a fraction of a second, it is always more energy efficient to turn the light off when not needed.

Frequent switching on and off will shorten the life of most CFLs. However, as an adjunct to the incandescent phase-out initiative, the Australian Government will introduce MEPS for CFLs that will include a basic standard for switching. This standard requires over 1000 switching cycles per 6000 hours of lamp life.

Further, for some special applications where frequent switching is critical, there are 'cold cathode' CFLs that feature lifetimes of 15,000 hours with 500,000 switching cycles. However, this technology is more expensive and mostly intended for commercial use.

QUESTION 13 - Can CFLs interfere with other electronic devices?

Yes, but it's rare. CFLs like all other electronic devices generate electromagnetic fields and also emit light in the infrared range, which can occasionally affect other electronic devices. If this occurs it can be fixed by moving the device away from the bulb or putting something between the device and the bulb, such as a lampshade.

QUESTION 14 - Where can I find the Standards for the lighting phase out?

The following standards are available for purchase from SAI Global website:

AS/NZS 4934.1(Int):2008
Incandescent lamps for general lighting service - Test methods - Energy performance
www.saiglobal.com/shop/Script/Details.asp?DocN=AS073378609XAT

AS/NZS 4934.2(Int):2008
Incandescent lamps for general lighting services - Minimum Energy Performance Standards (MEPS) requirements
www.saiglobal.com/shop/Script/Details.asp?DocN=AS0733786103AT

AS/NZS 4847.1(Int):2008
Self-ballasted lamps for general lighting services - Test methods - Energy performance.
www.saiglobal.com/shop/Script/Details.asp?DocN=AS0733786014AT

AS/NZS 4847.2(Int):2008 Self-ballasted lamps for general lighting services - Minimum Energy Performance Standards (MEPS) requirements
www.saiglobal.com/shop/Script/Details.asp?DocN=AS073378612XAT

Costs to households

QUESTION 15 - What will be the impact on households?

Changing over to CFLs will on average save households over $50 per year on electricity bills, and is an opportunity for everyone to reduce their carbon emissions, and be part of the solution to global warming.

CFLs may cost more per lamp ($3 to $6) but this extra initial cost will be offset many times through reduced energy use. In areas where lights are used a lot, savings from reduced electricity bills will cover the initial purchase within a few months.

CFLs are not being made mandatory. Other types of lights will still be available, such as mains voltage incandescent halogens (which can be used as a direct replacement for traditional incandescent light bulbs), and low voltage halogens that meet efficiency standards.

Specialist incandescent lighting - for example, oven lights or lights used in specific medical applications - will not be phased out until cost-effective efficient alternatives are available.

QUESTION 16 - What will be the impact on industry of the phase-out measure?

There is solid support from industry for the incandescent phase-out. Australia imports all the incandescent light bulbs used. There is no domestic manufacturing of this product.

Lighting importers already have access to competitive alternatives and will have plenty of time to change to alternative supplies.

Greenhouse benefits

QUESTION 17 - What is the total greenhouse benefit of the phase-out?

It is expected that phasing-out inefficient incandescent light bulbs will reduce Australia's greenhouse emissions by up to four million tonnes annually by 2015.

This is approximately equal to taking one million cars off the road or planting four million new trees a year.

QUESTION 18 - How much energy does it take to produce a CFL compared to a standard incandescent light bulb?

CFLs are technically more complex systems and are more energy intensive to produce, however a recent life cycle analysis which compared a CFL and an equivalent incandescent bulb concluded that the energy used to manufacture and transport the bulbs was only about 2 per cent of the energy used during their lives. It also considered other environmental impacts but concluded that the impact due to energy use dominated all other impacts.

Health questions

QUESTION 19 - Some people have complained about the potential health effects of fluorescent light 'flicker.' What is this and is it serious?

Modern CFLs give a light free of visible flicker. They operate at a frequency of over 20,000 on/off cycles per second (because of their electronic controllers). Modern linear fluorescent tubes flicker at a rate of more than 5000 times per second. These rates of flickering are not detectable by the human brain (studies suggest that one per cent of people can detect a flicker rate of up to 60 times per second), and are also well above the range of flicker commonly associated with photosensitive epilepsy at 5-30 times per second. Experts in the field of epilepsy research have stated that CFLs are no more likely to be a risk to epileptics than other light bulbs (Professor Graham Harding, Epilepsy Action UK - www.epilepsy.org.uk/info/photo_other.html)

A small number of cases of reactions to linear fluorescent tube flicker have been recorded, but these were almost certainly triggered by old technology which operated at a much lower frequency on a copper-iron magnetic controller, rather than an electronic controller which all modern fluorescent lamps use.

If a fluorescent light has a noticeable flicker it is likely to be faulty and should be replaced.

QUESTION 20 - Are CFLs safe to use for people with light sensitivity conditions?

Slightly more UV light may be emitted by CFLs when compared to an equivalent incandescent lamp. Some health professionals have suggested that a small number of patients with very severe light sensitivity may be adversely affected by the very small amount of UV light emitted from a bare CFL. However, many commonly available lampshades, or covers will reduce UV output from CFLs to levels well below those emitted from a bare incandescent bulb.

The most common source of UV exposure is from sunlight. To put the amount of UV emitted from fluorescent lighting in context a 1993 study found that UV exposure from sitting under typical office fluorescent lights for eight continuous hours is equivalent to just over one minute of sun exposure (An Estimation of Squamous Cell Carcinoma Risk from Ultraviolet Radiation Emitted by Fluorescent Lamps Photodermatol Photoimmunol Photomed, Lytle et al, 1993).

As the phase-out plan is developed, the Australian Government will continue to consider health issues and examine options to address any significant concerns. This may include providing information about possible impacts and available alternatives

Disposing of a broken or used CFL

QUESTION 21 - What should I do if I break a CFL or other mercury-bearing light?

All fluorescent lamps including CFLs contain very small amounts of elemental mercury. Government and industry continue to work together to minimise the mercury content. A new standard will be introduced for CFLs that includes a maximum mercury content aligned with the European Commission standard at five milligrams (one two-hundredth of a gram) per bulb. The ordinary fluorescent tubes in current use contain approximately 15 mg per tube of mercury, consistent with the Australian Standard; these have been used safely in most commercial and public buildings in Australia and around the world for over 40 years.

To put the amount of mercury contained in CFLs in context, five mg would fit on the tip of a ball point pen. The old mercury thermometers contain approximately 500 mg of mercury. With appropriate precautions regarding disposal in place, elemental mercury continues to be used safely in a variety of products including lamps, watch batteries, various medical instruments, and dental fillings.

Safe clean-up and disposal guidelines

Scientific investigations into the potential risks of mercury exposure from an accidentally broken CFL report that for the average person poisoning is very unlikely because of the very small amounts involved. However, following these simple and straightforward clean-up and disposal instructions will further minimise any potential risk.

Lighting companies generally recommend that if a CFL breaks you should observe the following:

  1. Open nearby windows and doors to ventilate the room.
  2. Use a brush to carefully sweep up the pieces and then use a paper towel, preferably moist, to wipe up any remaining glass fragments and phosphor powders.
  3. Use disposable rubber gloves.
  4. DO NOT use a vacuum cleaner because this can spread the contents of the bulb and contaminate the cleaner.
  5. Place all of the pieces of the light bulb and clean-up materials into a sealed plastic bag for disposal in your waste bin or in accordance with the advice of your local waste disposal authority.

Visit www.lighting.philips.com.au and www.gelighting.com for more details.

QUESTION 22 - How should I dispose of CFLs at the end of their working life?

CFLs can generally be disposed of in regular garbage bins - where the garbage goes to landfill. You should check with your local authority, who manages garbage collection, as to their advice on disposal of CFLs as different local authorities may have different arrangements. For example, some garbage is sent to waste processors and this may change the arrangements for disposal. Should you choose to dispose of your CFLs this way then it's best to wrap them in newspaper to prevent them from breaking.

You should NOT place CFLs in your kerbside recycling collection because they can break during transport and contaminate recyclable items.

Detailed information about disposal and recycling, developed with the assistance of the states and territories is available at www.environment.gov.au/settlements/waste/lamp-mercury.html

QUESTION 23 - What are governments doing about CFL-disposal?

The Environment Protection Heritage Council (EPHC) - which is made up of state, territory, and Commonwealth environment ministers - is currently investigating the issues associated with the end-of-life management (disposal methods) of CFLs. The EPHC has consulted with industry stakeholders, including the Australian Council of Recyclers, to gather information and to identify the nature and extent of any problems likely to be posed by landfill disposal of CFLs. This work is ongoing, and any recommendations resulting from this investigation will be taken into account in the formulation of a national approach on this issue.

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