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Lighting and energy
Due to an increasing concern about climate change, peak
oil, security, etc., EU and several national governments have
increased focus on transforming the current energy systems
through reduction of energy consumption and increased use
of renewable energy sources. Since approximately 20% of the
world’s total energy consumption was consumed by lighting
in 2005 (Brown, 2010), attention has been given to how energy
consumption from lighting can be reduced. As a result, the
EU commission included a policy in the European Eco-design
directive (2005/32/EC), phasing out the least energy efficient
light bulbs for domestic use in 2008, while constantly raising
the performance standards. First move was to phase out the
incandescent light bulb from 2009 through 2012. Phasing out
the incandescent light bulbs should presumably cut down the
European Countries’ electricity use corresponding to 1.2 times
the Danish yearly electricity consumption (DEST, 2009). The
focus on energy efficiency entails a wide range of (new) light-
ing technologies on the current market, however with mottled
quality, making it difficult to navigate the many alternatives.
The four main groups of domestic lighting technologies are
currently: Incandescent light bulbs (some are still available in
some stores), compact fluorescent light bulbs and tubes (CFL),
halogen bulbs and spots, and Light Emitting Diodes (LED)
bulbs and spots. One of the leading North European Energy
concerns, Dong Energy, even concludes that choosing between
light sources nowadays is a difficult matter -
”As the old incan-
descent light bulbs disappear, and new light sources are entering
the market, it may seem to be of a somewhat scientific matter to
find the right kind of bulb that lights up your home the way it is
supposed to”
(Dong Energy, 2013)
1
.
Due to this expansion of light sources available, and the dif-
ficulties in navigating among them, the Danish independent
public organization The Danish Energy Savings Trust (DEST)
has developed a number of guides and pamphlets during the
last 9 years, and more extensively during the last few years, to
inform Danish domestic users as well as professional suppliers
about the various technologies, their (intended) functions as
well as their shortcomings.
Aim, methods and scope
In setting out to understand whether information helps the
consumer navigating the increasingly complex market of light
sources, it is interesting to assess the written material that
the Danish Energy Savings Trust has provided. DEST aims to
provide private consumers as a well as the public and private
sector with information in relation to energy savings. As the
new lighting technologies are, to are large extent, a result of
a EU (and worldwide) attempts to lower energy consumption
from lighting, it is therefore interesting to assess whether
the information provided about the use of these technolo-
gies makes sense at a user level. Thus, this paper sets out to
assess the guides, which are publicly assessable on DEST’s
webpage (and some of the guides are also in print). The first
guide, as mentioned, dates back to 2004 and four others have
been published subsequently.
The assessment is based on the Qualitative Document Analy-
sis approach, which is based on the ethnographic content
analysis approach (e.g. Altheide et al, 2008). The qualitative
document analysis approach allow the researcher to look for
certain themes and discourses across documents. In this
paper, the presentation of the various light bulbs, as well as
the context they are presented in, will be followed across the
guides. As there seem to be a rising debate in terms of
color
rendering
(which is the ability to render a color naturally) versus
color temperature
(the color/whiteness of the light), this paper
therefore has special, however not exclusive, focus on the role
assigned to the color rendering capabilities as well as the
color temperatures of the various lighting technologies. The
difference between these two aspects are important, however
they are often confused with each other. Color rendering is
measured through a color rendering index (CRI). If it is stated
that a light source has CRI= Ra80, it implies that the light
source’ color rendering capabilities corresponds to 80 percent
of day lights’ color rendering capability. A Ra value of 80 is the
minimum requirement for indoor lighting according to Dan-
ish Standards (DS700). The color temperature is measured in
Kelvin degrees (K). If it stated that a light source has a color
temperature of 2700 K it means that the light source has a
warm white color. If it is stated to be 3500 K, it means that the
source has a colder white color.
In the following a general introduction of the possible inten-
tions of the pamphlets will be presented, followed by short
descriptions and assessments. Subsequently, the assessment
and discussion of the pamphlets is related to the information
available on the most typical light bulbs located in a Danish
supermarket. Concluding, the various presented and discussed
forms of information are related to a household case study that
explores residents’ everyday life practices that involve light-
ing, and thereby opens up for a discussion of the relevance and
appropriateness of the information given in pamphlets and
product packaging.
Energy efficient lighting as part of low carbon future goals
In setting out to inform residential users as well as profes-
sional suppliers about energy efficient lighting, “Elsparefon-
den” (The Danish Electricity Saving Trust) – now called “Center