Political Storm Clouds

Posted October 2, 2012 // Tagged as Blog // 4 Comments ↓

Storm Clouds Above Wind Farm; Margarie Card, Pikes Peak Camera Club

It seems that there is a growing political backlash against the EU lamp ban legislation. We noticed that the forthcoming reflector lamp and associated items that was due to be implemented in September 2013 has failed to be published and a recent question to the EU was answered with a holding reply saying that there would be further information in the middle of October.

A fellow traveller, Rik Gheysens has posted a comprehensive listing of questions raised by MEPs of all parties and across Europe about the ban in the impacts along with links to the replies. This make interesting if somewhat sad reading as most of the answers just do not provide any real information , in fact  the stamp of bureaucracy is very clear in the language and tone

We can hope that DG Energy is now beginning to get the message that this rule making is both unpopular and infective in achieving the aims of energy saving. While I doubt that they have the appetite to rescind the ban we can hope that they will not try and push further and get rid of Halogen energy savers in the review of non directio

 

nal lamps next year, we may also hope that they do not implement the reflector lamps ban as it is currently drafted, I guess we may know more in a couple of weeks.

Kevan Shaw

4 Responses

  1. kritisch-konstruktiv

    October 3rd, 2012 at 07:29

    As the EU including the majority of the EU-parliament is completely undiscerning the national-states have to set actions.
    In my petition on http://www.pro-gluehbirne.at 3 measures are demanded to do by the Republic of Austria on it’s territory, most prominent re-legalizing incandescent light-bulb.
    I strongly recommend all pro-light-bulb activist doing the same in their home countries.

  2. paul

    October 13th, 2012 at 11:31

    Welcome news and good link about the EU questions!
    There is more coverage about your blog post and the issues raised here:
    http://freedomlightbulb.org/2012/10/the-eu-beginning-to-waver-on-light-bulb.html

  3. Ron Lentjes

    November 18th, 2012 at 13:21

    I have been against BAN of INCANDESCENT since it started in Australia (now about 5 years or so research). To be short. I don’t like CFL, Fluorescent and white-LED (but I love colored monochrome LED and use them in electronics and art). But when it comes to ambient lighting, I use INCANDESCENT. I would love to use something more efficient, but this is a point to understand. INCANDESCENCE is the light from a hot object (thus requiring more energy). This produces the highest quality of light. (Good things often do take a bit more energy). It contains BILLIONS of frequencies! (CFL, Fluorescent, white-LED have only about 5 or so different phosphors creating only about 5 different peaks of frequencies). So to keep this short, It is the amazing abundance of frequencies that is the key to why INCANDESCENCE is so acceptable to the human experience. Just visit Australia. (I love Australia, but I hate it’s lighting). It is a wasted spoil of white-washed light. No character. Badly lit. Even dangerous for white street lighting as you can’t see the road in rain (the white light: you see the rain lighted and all the glare: you can’t see the road). So on. My final point: The calm and romantic lighting of INCANDESCENCE has been RUDELY taken away from our environment and replace with UGLY, HORRIFIC, Friday the 13th CFL, Fluorescent, white-LED lighting. Terrible. Don’t forget who started the BAN: PHILIPS ELECTRONICS NV NEDERLANDS. They couldn’t get take up of their baby CFL, so the INCANDESCENT was banned. More PROFIT can be made selling CFL than INCANDESCENT. That is the TRUTH of the matter. LIFE is a BALANCING ACT. BOY have we SCREWED this one UP! So now’s the time to stop the ban. Also, I use small incandescent lights for art. And LED can’t spread the light in 360 degrees and white-LED is unacceptable form of light (not pleasant and no good for art purpose). Take care. Now is the time to put a STOP to this MADNESS. I am for the calm, safe, and comfortable INCANDESCENT lighting of the world. Cheers, Ron Lentjes. (Artists and Photographers have a sense of these things very clearly. I would never chop down INCANDESCENT lights on historic buildings and replace them with CFL. That’s what they did in Australia. Can you believe that? It is so sad so see).

  4. Ron Lentjes

    November 18th, 2012 at 13:32

    Oh a comment about petitions. It doesn’t seem to work?? A key to understand about this ban is that HUGE profits are BEING made at all LEVELS. The only way to stop this is to start banning those who will NOT SELL YOU INCANDESCENTS. A bit mean. But point is, unless you break their profit, nothing in my opinion is going to change. I do ban places that will not sell INCANDESCENTS. I have not lifted these bans since. If you have better ideas please post for everyone. This is a serious matter. One more example: How do you keep inmates aggressive: Put them under CFL (or Fluorescent or white-LED) lighting. How do you calm down inmates: Put them under INCANDESCENT LIGHTING (and in the yellowish-white standard range – not over bright either as they go up to the blue light (very white)). So I’m not sure petition will work. I think we have to break the profits. Don’t buy CFL or white-LED! What can I say. Cheers, Ron Lentjes. (Oh, and send letters to shops saying: “Because you don’t sell INCANDESCENT GLOBES/BULBS, I refuse to BUY any thing from your shop. You are banned” – Yes send snail-mail letters! The impact is hugely different than email !) All the best.

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