China lights way for huge efficient bulb subsidy
(Planet Ark 23 Apr 08) China, the world's biggest light bulb maker, on Tuesday unveiled a massive subsidy programme to promote energy-efficient bulbs and cut pollution.
Beijing plans to usher in about 50 million low-energy bulbs in the first stage of the plan, phasing traditional incandescent lighting out of the market, the Ministry of Finance said in a statement on its website.
The light bulb programme is a showpiece of government efforts to shift to a cleaner model of development, away from pollution-belching factories that have blighted much of the country's air and water.
As the maker of about 70 percent of the world's light bulbs, sweeping changes in China could also speed the disappearance of incandescent lighting from ceilings and bedsides around the world.
If everyone in China made the switch in lighting, the country would save energy equivalent to about a 60 million tonne reduction in carbon dioxide emissions, the statement said.
Planet Ark 23 Apr 08: China lights way for huge efficient bulb subsidy
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