It's official: Ireland's Environment Minister announced a law yesterday to ban energy-wasting lightbulbs by January 2009. We did it!
The Irish Government's 2009 ban is the most progressive in Europe by far. They still need to really pass the law of course, and we still want at least one more country in the EU to follow suit -- setting the standards for EU legislation on energy efficiency.
Bring an energy saving lightbulb to celebrate our victory and say "we can do it!"
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It all happened so fast. The Green Party joined the Irish Government this summer, and we contacted them immediately about a possible lightbulbs law. We hoped we could get the Environment Minister, John Gormley, to agree to a ban by 2010. In November we started a petition, and by this week over 11,800 people signed it. Hundreds of you forwarded messages to friends and spread the word with blogs and other websites. Over 600 joined our special group on Facebook. Last Wednesday Duncan Stewart helped raise awareness about the campaign on Grafton Street with our volunteers in cool green hoodies. This Monday we hoisted a "BAN THE BULB" banner up the Spire monument in the centre of Dublin, to a brilliant reception from passers-by. We delivered the petition to the Minister's special adviser on climate change, David Healy. Only a few days later, Minister John Gormley announced a lightbulb ban -- starting January 1, 2009.
Last week I joined this 7-step climate change campaign with Greenpeace. We are starting with lightbulbs, but it's about energy efficiency generally. You should join:
Greenpeace proposes an "Energy Revolution" to save the world from catastrophic climate change. Half of it is about saving the power we use. And this campaign is about people like us helping to outlaw products that waste energy. Every week, for seven weeks, Greenpeace sends out an email with instructions how to campaign effectively for energy efficiency.
Every ton of carbon dioxide pumped into the atmosphere, every coal burning power plant built and every energy wasting lightbulb installed makes it harder for us to stop climate change. Each one is one more thing we'll need to undo. Better to do it right the first time.
