China joins the lamp ban club

Posted November 5, 2011 // Tagged as Blog // 5 Comments ↓

Imports and sales of 100 watt and higher incandescent bulbs will be banned from October next year, while those of 60 watts and above will be banned from October 2014. Xie Ji, deputy director of the environmental protection department with the National Development and Reform Commission, announced, with incandescent lamps of 15 watts or higher would be banned from 2016 if the scheme was a success. The NDRC has estimated that lighting accounts for 12% of China’s total electricity used and the switch will save 48 billion kilowatt hours of power per year, reducing emissions of carbon dioxide by 48 million tonnes annually.

The move has been forced from outside China. The Global Environment Facility fund, which has invested millions of dollars in China to encourage the phase-out, says that moving to efficient lighting is one of the simplest ways for countries to cut carbon emissions.

Christophe Bahuet, the deputy country director of the United Nations Development Programme, said: “I think what’s important for us is that China is joining an international trend. It also sends a signal that will inspire others.”

Lighting professionals in China are less enthusiastic for the ban. Liu Shengping, the secretary general of the China Association of Lighting Industry, said that it was “unrealistic” to require energy efficient lights were used everywhere. “As long as the demand exists, Chinese manufacturers can hardly pull the plug on the production line.”Wang Jinsui, the president of the China Illuminating Engineering Society, told the China Daily newspaper that the government should consider subsidies because many families would not be able to afford the more expensive energy-efficient bulbs.

Given the massive and typically very poor population in China the personal burden on families of having to pay for expensive compact fluorescent lamps will be very great. The demand for CFL will also challenge the burgeoning lamp industry in China Currently Europe and the USA are almost entirely dependent on China for CFL energy savers. We have already sen an effective ban on the export from China of rare earths essential for the manufacture of fluorescent material, If this ban happens and the internal Chinese market increases demand there may well be CFL shortages in Europe and the USA with consequent increases in retail prices and potential lack of availability. If China increases lamp production then there will be further increases in Cinnabar mining and Mercury production with consequent increases in pollution.

It is also unlikely that China will be any more effective that Europe in managing the collection and recycling of dead CFLs from consumers thereby increasing mercury in land fill. Yet again the ban appears as a political tool rather than an effective measure towards sustainability!

Kevan Shaw

Sources:
Xinhua News Agency,
Huffington Post
Guardian Eco

5 Responses

  1. avs

    November 9th, 2011 at 04:53

    The Chinese Government is still living in denial when it comes to modernize. They want fluorescent light bulps nobody wants , and that is not modernization. And the fluorescent light bulp is no longer cool , if it ever was that is.

  2. peter

    November 9th, 2011 at 17:50

    Thanks Kevan
    interesting background information

    The local ban also clearly has a profit motive for Chinese CFL/LED manufacturers.

    Apart from affecting people’s product choice,
    the actual switchover savings are not that great anyway =
    less than 1% of overall energy use, and 1-2% grid electricity is saved from banning the bulbs, as shown by USA Dept of Energy, EU statistics and other
    official information ( http://ceolas.net/#li171x )
    with alternative and much more meaningful ways to save energy in electricity generation, distribution or consumption.

    Light bulbs don’t burn coal or release CO2.
    If there’s a problem – deal with the problem,
    rather than to ban simple safe light bulbs that people obviously like to use.

  3. peter

    November 19th, 2011 at 21:14

    quoted excerpts of your fine work here
    http://freedomlightbulb.blogspot.com/2011/11/china-joins-fray.html
    with some comments

  4. himasif.com

    April 19th, 2014 at 11:33

    I bought 16 CFC bulbs in 2007. I also bought about 100 of the incandescent Halco long lasting bulbs. A 4 pack of CFC bulbs cost $11.99 and a 4 pack of the Halco long lasting bulbs cost $6.99. I have 32 light fixtures in my house. I put 16 CFC bulbs and the Halco bulbs side by side so they would burn at the same hours. I noticed very little decrease in my electric bill.. Both made claims they would last 10,000 hours. Now, over five years later 15 of the 16 Halco bulbs are still burning and only 6 of the 16 CFC bulbs are still burning. I am replacing all the burned out bulbs with the Halco bulbs because any savings on electricity are more than eaten up by the cost of the CFC bulbs and the fact that they burn out faster than the Halco bulbs. The CFC bulbs also contain mercury which could not be a good thing and they emit an awful odor sometimes when they burn out. I saw 2 of them smoke right before burning out.

  5. estate agents peterborough

    November 3rd, 2015 at 15:21

    Does anyone think that this lamp ban actually makes a difference. I am replacing all the burned out bulbs with the Halco bulbs because any savings on electricity are more than eaten up by the cost of the CFC bulbs and the fact that they burn out faster than the Halco bulbs. The CFC bulbs also contain mercury which could not be a good thing and they emit an awful odor sometimes when they burn out.

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