EPA LIGHTING STANDARD INTENSIFIES ENERGY STAR CLASH WITH DOE

摘要

EPA's recent decision to issue a first-time solid state lighting (SSL) Energy Star specification as a "technical amendment" without public comment is intensifying a clash with the Department of Energy (DOE) over the agencies' roles in implementing Energy Star, with critics of EPA's move calling it a "power grab" designed to undercut DOE's separate SSL Energy Star standard. DOE finalized its lighting standard last September after several years of planning, and has been holding meetings and workshops to prepare for the launch of the first-time SSL specifications due to take effect Sept. 30. SSL, which includes light-emitting diodes (LEDs), is considered by many to be the next generation of super-efficient lighting that will eventually replace incandescents and fluorescents.