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Following is a question by the Hon Kenneth Leung and a written reply by the Secretary for the Environment, Mr Wong Kam-sing, in the Legislative Council today (May 27):
Question:
In order to save energy, the Government has for many years encouraged the public to switch to use energy-saving lighting products such as light emitting diode (LED) lamps, fluorescent tubes and compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs), which are more energy-efficient than incandescent light bulbs (ILBs). It is noted that the blue rays emitted by LED lamps may impair vision, and some CFLs and fluorescent tubes when broken will release phenol and vaporised mercury, a toxic heavy metal, and prolonged contact with such chemical substances is harmful to the human body. On the other hand, the Fluorescent Lamp Recycling Programme currently launched by the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) provides households with free collection and treatment for all used fluorescent lamps containing mercury, including fluorescent tubes, CFLs and high intensity discharge lamps. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it assessed in the past three years the effectiveness of the various measures aiming to promote the use of energy-efficient lighting products; if it did, of the details;
(2) whether the EPD at present handles separately the various types of waste energy-efficient lighting products collected; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(3) of the quantity of waste energy-efficient lighting products collected by the EPD in each of the past five years, with a breakdown by type of products;
(4) of the quantity of waste energy-efficient lighting products containing mercury handled by the EPD in each of the past five years;
(5) of the quantity of waste energy-efficient lighting products sent to the landfills for disposal in each of the past five years, with a breakdown by type of products and landfill; if such figures are not available, of the reasons for that;
(6) of the quantity of energy-efficient lighting products imported for local use in each of the past five years;
(7) whether it regulates the disposal of energy-efficient lighting products by households as well as industrial and commercial users; if it does, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(8) whether it has assessed the impacts of energy-efficient lighting products on the health of humans and animals in the course of their use, collection and disposal; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(9) whether it regulates the chemical substances contained in LED lamps, and assesses the quality of such kind of products; if it does, of the details and the channels through which the authorities disseminate such information; if not, the reasons for that;
(10) given that the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department (EMSD) currently incorporates LED lamps into the "recognition type" of the Energy Efficiency Labelling Scheme (EELS), whether the EMSD will consider the incorporation of such kind of products into the "grading type" of EELS, so as to allow consumers access to more information; if the EMSD will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(11) whether it has compiled statistics on the existing number of LED lamps installed at outdoor venues, and assessed the amount of glare and brightness of such lighting equipment; if it has, of the details, and set out the relevant information by District Council district; if not, the reasons for that?
Reply:
President,
(1) In the past decade, lighting on average accounted for about 15 per cent of total electricity consumption in Hong Kong. Incandescent light bulbs (ILB) are not energy-efficient as 90 per cent of the electricity consumed is lost as heat whereas only 10 per cent is used for lighting. The Government has since 2012 adopted a two-pronged approach to expedite the phasing out of ILB by launching a Charter Scheme under which retailers and suppliers pledged to reduce the supply of ILB (Note), and stepping up public education on the benefit of using more energy-efficient lamps. Regarding alternatives, overseas countries and Hong Kong commonly adopt energy-efficient compact fluorescent lamps (CFL) and Light Emitting Diode (LED) lamps to replace ILB.
As at April 2015, a total of 36 suppliers and 28 retailers have signed up to the Charter. The suppliers and retailers have pledged to stop replenishing stock of targeted ILB and stop selling the targeted ILB by the end of 2013. In December 2013, the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department (EMSD) wrote to all participating suppliers and retailers to remind them to stop the sale of ILB. Regular inspections have been regularly conducted since then to ensure suppliers' and retailers' compliance with the pledge.
We will continue to educate the public and major lamp users on the benefit of using more energy-efficient lamps through broadcasting of TV and radio announcements in the public interests (APIs), distribution of posters and publicity materials, as well as dissemination of information on the Internet.
(2), (3), (4) and (7) As for the parts of the question concerning the handling and recycling of used energy-efficient lighting products, our reply is as follows:
Amongst various lighting products, CFLs and fluorescent tubes (FTs) normally contain mercury vapour. Disposal of these lighting products in large quantity (mostly from commercial & industrial premises) must comply with the Waste Disposal (Chemical Waste) (General) Regulation. These products should be properly packed, labelled, and collected by licensed chemical waste collectors for delivery to the Chemical Waste Treatment Centre (CWTC) in Tsing Yi for treatment. On the other hand, the relevant trade has launched the Fluorescent Lamp Recycling Programme (FLRP) with support from the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) to collect CFLs and FTs from domestic households free of charge and deliver them collectively to Tsing Yi's CWTC for proper treatment.
Over the past five years, the number of CFLs and FTs (including those collected through the FLRP and from industrial and commercial sectors) items handled by the CWTC in Tsing Yi is listed in Annex I.
As for LED lights, since they are not categorised as chemical waste, there is no recycling programme for LED.
(5) In the annual waste composition survey conducted at landfills, we have not conducted separate survey on "waste energy-efficient lighting products" that have been mixed with other waste, hence there is no relevant statistical data.
(6) The Census and Statistics Department (C&SD) compiles the import and re-export statistics of hot cathode fluorescent lamps (including CFLs and fluorescent tubes) and LED based on the information provided by importers and exporters to the Customs and Excise Department (C&ED). The figures for 2010 - 2014 are listed in Annex II.
The above figures are compiled based on the information provided by various importers and exporters to C&ED, but the difference between the imports and re-exports in a particular year is not equivalent to the local sales figure for that year.
(8) Regarding the potential health effect of light emitted from domestic energy-efficient lighting products (such as LED lights and CFLs), overseas authorities, including the Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks of the European Commission, Health Canada and the former Health Protection Agency of United Kingdom, have conducted relevant studies. According to the results of these studies, ultraviolet and blue light levels from domestic energy-efficient lighting products under normal use are unlikely to pose significant health risk to the general public. For people who suffer from light sensitive conditions, they have to be cautious in using LED lights and CFLs, and be aware of their body conditions and consult medical professionals if necessary. Besides, people who suffer from light sensitive conditions should also be aware of their body conditions when exposed to sunlight.
CFLs contain materials including metal, glass and a tiny amount of mercury. Fluorescent lamps (FLs) do not affect the human body and the environment when they are intact. When such lamps break, a small amount of mercury vapour will be released and they should be handled with care. With good ventilation, mercury vapour will be diluted very quickly. Therefore, under normal circumstances, the transport and disposal of CFLs will not affect the health of the public or the persons handling such wastes. The EPD has issued guidelines on disposal of CFLs to remind the public to place used FLs in the packaging of new lamps before depositing them into collection boxes for recycling, and to take safety measures when handling broken lamps.
(9) Battery operated LED supplied in the market for private use should comply with the "General Safety Requirement" under the Consumer Goods Safety Ordinance. The requirement imposes a duty on manufacturers, importers and suppliers to ensure that their goods are reasonably safe, having regard to all the circumstances including:
(a) the manner in which and the purpose for which the goods are sold;
(b) the use of marks, instructions or warnings on the goods in connection with its keeping, use or consumption;
(c) compliance with reasonable safety standards published by a standards institute; and
(d) the existence of reasonable means to make the goods safer.
As for electrical products designed (including LED lighting) for "household use" operated from mains supply (220v) and supplied in Hong Kong, they must comply with the electrical safety requirement stipulated in the Electrical Products (Safety) Regulation and be issued with valid certificates of safety compliance.
(10) Since June 2011, the Voluntary Energy Efficiency Labelling Scheme under the EMSD has been extended to cover LED lamps. The participating manufacturers, importers and local agents could affix the "recognition type" label to the products which meet the energy efficiency and performance requirements of the scheme. The label assists consumers in choosing more energy efficient products by informing consumers that it meets a certain standard of energy efficiency.
Since LED lighting technology is under development, it is more appropriate to adopt the "recognition type" of energy efficiency labelling for LED lamps for the time being. The EMSD will closely monitor the development of LED lighting technology, and consider the need to adopt the "grading type" of energy efficiency labelling for LED lamps in due course.
(11) We do not have statistics on the number of all external lighting installations in Hong Kong.
Note: The Charter Scheme currently covers 25 watt or above non-reflector type ILB, including general lighting service lamps, candle shape, fancy round and other decorative lamps, but excluding tungsten halogen lamps.
Ends/Wednesday, May 27, 2015
Issued at HKT 14:29
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