October 18, 2007

ROSEMEAD, Calif., Oct. 18, 2007 — Individuals can help make a difference in climate change, and Southern California Edison (SCE) is joining the city and county of Los Angeles in asking Southland residents to do just that by supporting the “Lights-Out Los Angeles” campaign.

Area residents are asked to turn off one household light bulb from 8–9 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 20, to raise awareness of the importance of preserving energy resources and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

“The Lights-Out Los Angeles campaign complements Southern California Edison’s partnership with ENERGY STAR’s Change a Light, Change the World campaign, which encourages customers to change at least one regular light bulb for an ENERGY STAR-qualified compact fluorescent light bulb,” said Lynda Ziegler, senior vice president of the customer services business unit. “We’re asking customers to turn off one incandescent light bulb Saturday evening, and when turning it back on, replace it with a compact fluorescent light bulb. Taking this simple step will help protect the environment and contributes to issues surrounding climate change.”

State officials believe that if every California household replaced five incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs), it would reduce greenhouse gas emissions at levels equivalent to taking 400,000 cars off the road.

SCE is encouraging people to switch off only non-essential lighting such as lights in houses and office buildings; SCE is not asking to turn-off streetlights or any power necessary to keeping communities and its residents safe.
 
SCE helps all customers switch to energy-saving CFLs by reducing the price of such light bulbs at the retail level. The company provides a rebate to manufacturers and major retailers who pass along the discount to customers by reducing the retail price by the amount of the rebate — from $1 to $2.50 per bulb. In the past year alone, nearly 9 million CFLs have been distributed through SCE’s retail program resulting in energy savings of approximately 330 million kilowatt-hours. 

For a full list of retail outlets throughout SCE’s 15-county service area, visit www.sce.com.

Additional benefits of using CFLs include:

  • CFLs use up to 75 percent less electricity than traditional bulbs.
  • CFLs last up to 10 times longer than regular incandescent bulbs.

To learn more ways you can save energy at home, visit http://www.sce.com/_Tools/Residential/HomeEnergySurvey.htm?from=changealightpromotion to take an online energy survey. SCE customers who complete the online survey will receive a complimentary gift, which includes a CFL.

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Southern California Edison, an Edison International (NYSE:EIX) company, is the largest electric utility in California. SCE serves a population of more than 13 million via 4.8 million customer accounts in a 50,000-square-mile service area within Central, Coastal and Southern California.