Wal-Mart has committed to selling 100 million compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs in the next 12 months. Specifically their aim is for each of their regular customers to buy at least one of these bulbs, and they want to make it the one bulb to change the world. CFL bulbs consume around a quarter of the energy of traditional incandescent bulbs. They should also appeal to the laziness within everyone; CFL bulbs can last up to a decade.
So at this point it feels like a ‘cute’ idea. Use less electricity and replace the bulbs in my house—yippee. Well half of the electricity in the United States is generated from coal-burning power plants, which are therefore the single largest source of greenhouse gases. Wal-Mart’s decision to aggressively sell these bulbs could have a significant effect on the global warming crisis.
I love it when the market forces evolution. To me it’s one of the most beautiful byproducts of our capitalist system, and it happens so infrequently that it’s like a techie aurora borealis. Some people will be boring and quibble about the quality of light and the higher cost of CFL bulbs. To the first point, I say either you put more lights in your room if you want it brighter (or just go outside already). Cost is probably the most short-sighted of any argument here. If you aren’t willing to put your money into something that will ultimately save you cash and benefit the environment then I’ve got two words for you…
via Treehugger
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Coal-burning power plants are the single largest source of greenhouse gases, but the power they produce goes to a whole bunch of different uses both consumer and industrial. Consequently, while lighting does use quite a bit of electricity, the two biggest ways consumers impact the environment are through their daily transportation and food choices (see http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/060980281X?v=glance).
Sorry to say, but driving to Wal-Mart to buy a compact flourescent is unlikely to save much of anything, other than Wal-Mart’s market share. Here’s what you’ve got to do: drive less and eat less red meat. If you need more things to worry about, think about what you spend money on. It usually correlates to what kind of impact those purchases have on the environment.
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