March 2, 2007

BMU customers change a light and change the world

By LOU PENDLETON

As part of its campaign to save energy, save money and save the environment, Bryan Municipal Utilities handed out more than 550 compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) to it customers in January and February.

City utility customers clipped a coupon from the BMU newsletter, mailed with recent utility bills, and exchanged it for a free Energy Star compact fluorescent light bulb. CFLs use 66 percent less energy than a standard incandescent bulb and last up to 10 times longer. Replacing a 60-watt incandescent with a 13-watt CFL saves 47 watts in energy while still enjoying the same light output.

For a light that is on six hours per day, 365 days per year, the annual energy savings is 103 kilowatt hours per bulb. Therefore, the community-wide savings of 550 CFLs equates to approximately 56,650 kilowatt hours annually. At $0.08 per kilowatt-hour, the money saved is $4,532.

In addition to saving money, using less energy means burning less fuel to generate power, and burning less fuel benefits the environment. For every 100-kilowatt hours generated, about 198.8 pounds of carbon dioxide is produced. Therefore, the installation of 550 compact fluorescent light bulbs equates to 112,620 pounds of carbon dioxide eliminated annually.

Similarly, using the 550 energy saving CFLs eliminates about 437.4 pounds of nitrous oxide emissions and 1,173 pounds of sulfur dioxide emissions annually. If every household in the U.S. replaced one incandescent light bulb with a compact fluorescent light bulb, it would prevent air pollution equal to removing one million cars from the road.

Regular incandescent lights are incredibly inefficient. In fact, only 10 percent of the electricity they consume is emitted as light; the rest is wasted as heat. Compact fluorescent light bulbs are an energy efficient alternative in your home.

Nate Gardner lives in Bryan with his wife and son in a three-bedroom house. He is considering changing 10 incandescent bulbs in his house (six 60-watt bulbs and four 100-watt bulbs) to CFLs. Assuming that the lights are on about six hours per day, he would save about $102 a year on his electric bill by switching to CFLs. He said he is going to the store tonight.

Today's CFLs are designed to be smaller and thinner than earlier models, so you can install them in a wider variety of fixtures, such as wall sconces, ceiling-mounted fixtures, and ceiling fans. CFLs are most efficient when they operate for several hours at a time. Because CFLs last longer, you enjoy the convenience of buying and changing bulbs less frequently.

Please keep in mind that CFL bulbs contain small amounts of mercury, so do not throw the bulbs in the trash. Take them to a household hazardous waste depot. For information about recycling CFLs, contact Kim Shoup at the Williams County Health Department, 419-485-3141. For more information on CFLs, visit www.energystar.gov.