Sydney - Australia announced plans to ban traditional light bulbs today, February 20, in a move Prime Minister John Howard said represented a practical step toward slowing climate change.
Claiming a world first for a national government, Environment Minister Malcolm Turnbull said incandescent lightbulbs would be phased out by 2010 in favour of the more fuel-efficent compact fluorescent bulbs.
"Make the switch to more energy efficient products like compact fluorescent light bulbs."
Turnbull said replacing the traditional coiled filament light bulbs invented by Thomas Edison in 1879 would cut Australia's greenhouse gas emissions by four million tonnes a year by 2015.
"If the whole world switches to these bulbs today, we would reduce our consumption of electricity by an amount equal to five times Australia's annual consumption of electricity," Turnbull said.
"The climate change challenge is a global one. I encourage other countries to follow Australia's lead and make the switch to more energy efficient products like compact fluorescent light bulbs."
Howard said households would benefit from the switch to the high-tech bulbs.
Long lasting efficiency
"They'll be a bit dearer to start off with but over time they'll be less expensive and they'll last four to 10 times longer.
"We need to take practical measures in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions."
Conservative leader Howard, who has softened his sceptical stance on global warming as an election looms later this year and opinion polls show high voter concern on the issue, said he was a "climate change realist".
"I think some of the stuff that's around at the moment is too alarmist," he said. "But on the other hand I think the evidence is very strong that mankind has made a contribution to the warming of our globe."
Australia is believed to be the first national government to look at banning tradtional lightbulbs, although lawmaker Lloyd Levine proposed similar legistion in the US state of California last month.
Eskom has initiated a similar voluntary project in South Africa has - AFP