Gov’t to distribute 13M fluorescent lights to help mitigate climate change
Some 13 million compact fluorescent lights will be distributed nationwide by the government under its program to phase out incandescent bulbs as it consumes five time more energy than the fluorescent lights.
The undertaking is one of the measures identified by the government to help mitigate climate change.
President Arroyo, in her address during the closing session of the two-day High Level Dialogue on Climate Change in Asia and the Pacific at the Asian Development Bank (ADB) headquarters in Mandaluyong City, said the switch from incandescent bulbs to CFLs is a joint undertaking with the ADB under President Haruhiko Kuroda as part of the Green Philippines Agenda.
The President explained that a 60- watt bulb could be replaced by a 12-watt CFL. This saves close to 50 watts without losing illumination. If we replace one million incandescent bulbs with one million CFLs, we will have obviated the need to set up a 50-megawatt power plant which would cost us at least 50 million dollars to put up.
“In accordance with the program that was mentioned by President Kuroda, by August we will distribute five million free CFLs in Metro Manila, Cebu, Cagayan de Oro and Davao cities. This is only the first tranche because the entire program calls for the distribution of 13 million free compact CFLs, President Arroyo said”.
By replacing greenhouse-emitting incandescent and yellow bulbs with CFLs, the Philippines will be initiating reduction in carbon emissions and help mitigate climate change, the President said.
The President pointed out that “if our country is to do its fair share then the developed nations, with their historically much greater contribution to climate change, must help us take a less private intensive role to sustainable development including expanded carbon markets, investments and technology transfer”.(PIA6/T.Villavert)