The stage has been set for the imminent death of the incandescent light bulb in Europe. The United States is not far behind. Not everyone is thrilled, however.
And in a twist of rapidly advancing technology, the days of highly-touted replacement compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) are likely numbered, too.
Here’s the latest in the growing global controversy: European stores have stopped restocking some wattages of the traditional light bulbs as part of a voluntary withdrawal and a government campaign to force people to buy the newer, more energy efficient fluorescent light bulbs, according to the Daily Mail.
The real threat
CFLs emerged in recent years as a cure-all to the world’s growing energy demands. They have been highly touted in the United States, too, and the country is on track to eliminate incandescents, which eat up roughly a quarter of the electricity produced in the country, by 2012.
But CFLs contain small amounts of mercury that, over time, could build up in landfills and cause environmental problems. Few states and locales have recycling programs to handle the bulbs.
A study by Yale University researchers in October found that some countries will see reduced mercury emissions if they switch completely from incandescents to CFLs. Among them: China, Romania, Bulgaria and Greece, all countries where coal-powered energy generation releases mercury into the environment. Likewise, mercury emissions would drop in North Dakota, New Mexico and West Virginia.
But mercury emissions would rise in Alaska, California, Oregon, Idaho and several New England states along with South America, Africa, the Middle East and parts of Europe.
“Compact fluorescent lighting is an area where we’re really pushing this alternative and all these policies are being enacted, but we’re not looking at the potential unintended consequences of what we’re doing,” said study author Julie Beth Zimmerman, an assistant professor in Yale’s Department of Chemical Engineering and its School of Forestry & Environmental Studies.
Robert Roy Britt is the Editorial Director of Imaginova. In this column, The Water Cooler, he takes a daily look at what people are talking about in the world of science and beyond.