Sydney, ANZAC and Glebe Island Bridges, Sydney - photo Marghanita

Ecologically Sustainable Sydney

Energy Efficient Lighting

Disclaimer: The information provided here is of a general nature. Ramin Communications is not recomending the specific products mentioned here and accepts no responsibility for the accuracy of information about specific products. Electricity is DANGEROUS and should not be treated lightly. Information on individual product packaging should be read carefully and understood before installation. The advice of qualified Electricians should be sought on specific requirements and installations.

Unlike CFLs, LED Lamps contain no mercury. For more on Fluorescent lamps and mercury, see end-of-life management and Mercury in Fish .

AUSGRID LED Lighting Trials

Source: SSROC STREET LIGHTING IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM (29 FEBRUARY 2012) Report to Leichhardt Municipal Council, LMC Climate Change Taskforce (Agenda March 2012) – MARCH 2012 (page 16/7/8)

LED TRIALS FOR RESIDENTIAL ROADS

Ausgrid trials of LEDs at eight sites are progressing well with Ausgrid now indicating that it may be willing to stage a full LED Expression of Interest (EOI) within a couple of months and a full tender later this year. The continuing challenges with CFL lighting have notably accelerated Ausgrid’s consideration of LEDs in recent months.

Three different manufacturers’ LEDs are on trial. LEDs offer not just energy efficiency benefits but, as demonstrated in the trial, an obvious improvement in the length of road reserve that can be effectively lit and the uniformity of the lighting compared to both current and previous residential road lighting types.

The key challenges with LEDs remain capital cost (which is continuing to decline and quickly approaching a viable level), concerns about long-term reliability and the effective management of glare. Ausgrid has indicated that it will likely host evening site visits for Councils in April and by that time intends to have completed photometric site testing and post-installation surveys of residents.

If you would like to see the lights sooner, the eight LED trial sites are located as follows:
• 126-168 Ramsgate Ave, North Bondi (Waverley Council) – LRL lights (only site at P4 with all others at P5)
• Oak Drive (Ash to Whitemore), Georges Hall (Bankstown Council) – LRL lights
• Shadforth St (Lakemba St to Punchbowl Rd), Wiley Park (Canterbury Council) – LRL lights
• Coast Ave/ Arthur Ave, Cronulla (Sutherland Council) – OrangeTek lights
• Bareena Dr (Woodland to Dobroyd Scenic Dr), Balgowlah Heights (Manly Council) – OrangeTek lights
• 1-48 Betty Hendry Pde, North Ryde (Ryde Council) – Sylvania lights • Medusa St, Mosman (Mosman Council) – Sylvania lights
• 34-90 Irene Pde, Noraville (Wyong Council) – Sylvania lights

In preparation for a full Ausgrid LED tender, the SSROC SLI Program has now had discussions with over 40 domestic and international LED road lighting suppliers with a particular focus on the unique requirements of the Australian Standard for road lighting. At this stage, 5-8 credible suppliers are expected to be ready to offer AS/NZS 1158 - compliant products by the time Ausgrid tenders.

The current Ausgrid default lighting for residential roads is the 42W CFL. Ausgrid has had an unexplained increase in CFL failures since December 2010. As a result, it has suspended accelerated replacements of old lighting with CFLs while the causes are investigated. Unfortunately, Ausgrid has not yet been able to conclusively identify the cause(s) of elevated CFL failure rates, though changes in componentry appear to be the most likely cause.

The key initiatives being delayed by the on-going problems with CFL lighting are the adoption of the 32W CFL for areas with P5 lighting (a change agreed to by Councils in March 2011) and the program to replace up to 30,000 obsolete TF2*20 lights (agreed to by Councils in December 2010). The on-going challenges with CFLs appear to be accelerating Ausgrid’s consideration of LEDs as the possible default lighting choice for all residential roads including any accelerated replacement programs.

MAIN ROADS

In late 2011, all 41 councils served by Ausgrid approved a move to high pressure sodium with Active Reactor power supplies...

...(page 18)In summary, recent technology agreements between Ausgrid and councils will see total street lighting energy consumption and GHG emissions progressively decline by 35% over the long-term And, long-term energy consumption and GHG emissions are expected to decline by an estimated 50% as a result of additional lighting tenders that Ausgrid has agreed to complete this year. Each of the new lighting technologies agreed and expected to be agreed this year not only has lower energy consumption but also lower total costs for Councils than the previous Ausgrid standard choices.

LMC Climate Change Taskforce (Agenda March 2012) http://ramin.com.au/eco-sydney/LED-Lighting-AUSGRID.shtml source Last modified 28 August 2013.