Essex county – the most populous in the United Kingdom – will be embarking on an interesting experiment this coming fall. In an attempt to reduce the county government’s energy consumption by a third, the council has passed an initiative to turn off select street lamps in its rural townships from midnight until 5am.
Timer devices will be installed on the selected lamps to facilitate the automatic shut-offs and it is hoped that the plan will provide about £1 million ($1.8 million USD) in annual savings, in addition to significant carbon emission reductions.
Environmentalists and star-gazers are happy with the plan, …read more