Impact of LED to the environment

LED lighting allows individuals, companies and the world to go green and save money.

Green initiatives are certainly worthwhile given the positive impact on the environment, and LED lighting is one green technology that can also save companies and individuals money.

With the advent of LED-based solid-state lighting (SSL), companies and individuals can slash greenhouse-gas emissions while positively impacting the financial bottom line. Indeed, while LED lighting costs more than other technologies, savings in energy and maintenance costs more than cover the upfront premium.

The push for replacing incandescent light bulbs with lower-wattage compact-fluorescent lamps (CFLs) – thereby reducing consumption of electricity and the fossil fuels needed to produce it – brought its own set of environmental problems.

The supposedly green, environmentally-friendly CFLs contain mercury compound. However, if they are not handled or disposed properly, CFLs can expose deadly compounds into the air and water supply, as well as contaminating landfills. A fact sheet about CFLs from the US Environmental Protection Agency notes that, “Exposure to mercury, a toxic metal, can affect our brain, spinal cord, kidneys and liver, causing symptoms such as trembling hands, memory loss, and difficulty moving.” Mercury is released into our environment when products with mercury are broken, disposed of improperly, or incinerated. If you break a CFL, clean it up safely.

LED lighting, conversely, is tend to deliver on energy savings with a positive environmental impact. With LEDs, the lights can be recycled so that costs can be reduce because we not to have concern about proper disposal process.

LED given incredibly long lifetime, recycling wont happen often. LEDs can have a minimum life of 50,000 hours, it can last five times longer than their nearest competitors. When compared with incandescent lamps (average life of 2,000 hours) the disparity is even more remarkable. Given their solid-state circuitry, LEDs are very durable.

The major advantage of LEDs is, once in place, it will be years before these lights will need to be changed. The longevity aspect of LEDs can save businesses thousands of dollars in maintenance costs.

The decrease in electricity usage can actually benefit to individuals and users. Another economic advantage of LED lighting for businesses is that due to their long lives.

The reduction in energy use has another benefit. As less electricity be used, less coal must be burned in coal-fired power plants to supply that electricity. A significant amount of electricity produced in the United States comes from burning coal. This means that as less electricity is used, less coal is burned, and therefore less carbon dioxide (a greenhouse gas), sulfur dioxide, nitrous oxides, and mercury are emitted to the environment.

As a result, installation of LEDs leads to less pollution and a lower carbon footprint. LEDs are good for the environment.