Ireland bans lightbulbs

Ireland becomes the first country in the world to put a ban on the sale of lightbulbs, beginning January 2009.

People will have to switch to compact fluorescent lamps (CFL) or other low-energy and long-life bulbs in the next 12 months.
Initially, Ireland’s National Climate Change Strategy asked the government to issue a levy for low-efficiency bulbs but the government went even further and completely banned the use of incandescent lightbulbs starting from the month of January, in 2009.

According to the studies of the Irish government, consumers there will save around 180 million euro every year, as a result of the conversion to the new bulbs.

Enviroment Minister John Gormley, who announced this ban to the public in his Carbon Budget,
said that Ireland could save 700,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions each year.

That's very interesting and I hope that more countries will enforce the conversion to high-efficiency bulbs, but I don't think that outlawing the use of incandescent bulbs is the right choice. I mean, CFL's contain mercury, don't they? If one of them breaks, you have to open the windows and leave the room for 15 minutes (details). Not to mention the fact that ovens and refrigerators use lightbulbs, too, and would you want a mercury-containing CFL be in your oven? I wouldn't :|.

Perhaps the ban is kind of an exaggeration, but I totally agree with the idea of lowering the energy consumption of the bulbs that we use.(not that the Romanian government would be interested in the subject or anything, just my opinion :) )

Now, for the trick question.
Do you use high-efficiency lightbulbs in your home? Or do you at least plan to change the old bulbs for new ones as soon as possible? Because if you don't, Santa is going to be upset and bring you a fluorescent lamp this Christmas...you don't want to see Santa get angry, do you?

- source: DigitalJournal -