Replace incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescents

CFLs use 60% less energy than regular bulbs and last many times as long. Institutions love them since maintenance costs for changing bulbs go down along with energy usage. This simple switch at home would save about 300 pounds of carbon dioxide a year. If every family in the U.S. made the switch, we’d reduce carbon dioxide by more than 90 billion pounds!

CFLs are available at many local stores, and discounts sponsored by governments and local utility companies, vendors, and even the outlets themselves, are common. You can also purchase CFLs online from the Energy Federation which has an assortment of both common and uncommon types (like dimmable ones). But remember, shopping locally, and from smaller stores rather than the ‘big box’ outlets, generally saves energy, and supports a more sustainable local economy.

It’s estimated that replacing 50 old-style incandescents with equivalent CFLs would save the as much CO2 as taking one car off the road. Quite a surprising fact! The government of Australia recently banned the sale of energy-wasting incandescent bulbs. Many other governments are following suit.