Britain unveiled plans on Sept.27 to phase out energy-wasting traditional light bulbs by 2012 to cut the equivalent of a coal-fired power station's carbon dioxide emissions.
The voluntary initiative foresees removing energy-wasting incandescent light bulbs from shops and replacing them with low-energy compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs.
Britain aims to save up to five million tons of carbon dioxide a year by 2012, or the equivalent to the carbon emissions of a typical 1 Giga Watt coal-fired power station.
"I am delighted that major companies have said they are prepared to help deliver this ambitious timetable and offer products which will help their own customers play their part in combating climate change," Secretary of State Hilary Benn said. But he called for wider action from retailers, manufacturers and service providers to improve the energy efficiency of other wasteful products like televisions and offer greener choices to their customers.
In June, the European Commission announced that manufacturers had decided to eliminate traditional light bulbs from the European market by 2015.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2007
