Philips and Arnold Schwarzenegger call for action to switch to LED lighting in cities
Vienna, Austria – At the first international sustainable energy conference hosted by the “Regions of Climate Action”(R20), Philips and R20 emphasized the benefits of rapid adoption of intelligent and energy-efficient LED lighting infrastructure for sub-national government organizations (States, Regions, Provinces, Counties and Cities).
“LED technology has proven its reliability and now is the time to accelerate adoption. By using LED-based lighting, municipalities can enhance safety for citizens, reduce public energy bills and free up resources to support economic growth.” said Eric Rondolat, CEO of Philips Lighting.
“Cities, states, and provinces are where the real action is when it comes to energy efficiency projects,” said R20 Founding Chairman Arnold Schwarzenegger. “We look forward to having Phillips join our building and street lighting efficiency campaign and help to make everyone an action hero in building sustainable communities and fighting climate change.”
At the conference, Philips and R20 jointly announced the launch of an “LED Street Lighting Toolkit” in the course of Q1 2013 that will enable sub-national governments to act quickly to improve street lighting with LED technology.
Recent studies have indicated that improving the efficiency of general electricity use from the present rate of 1 percent per year up to 3 percent per year would reduce the need for capital investments in public energy infrastructure by up to 1900 billion by 2030, providing medium-term public budget relief.
Cities are responsible for 70 percent of global energy use. Lighting of public spaces (streets, parks, offices, schools) is responsible for 50 percent [2] of a city’s energy bill. LED lighting thus represents a significant opportunity for city councils to cut their power bills and ease their stretched balance sheets.
Equally important, LED lighting can help municipalities create safer cities – and the benefit of LED lighting in this respect has been recognized by citizens. A global LED trial [3] by The Climate Group in 12 cities determined that citizens prefer LED lighting, with 90 percent supporting its rollout in cities, citing increased feelings of safety.
