Don’t be a Christmas Grinch when it comes to festive lights, business group urges minister
ENVIRONMENT Minister Eamon Ryan has been urged not to be a Christmas Grinch after the Green leader urged local authorities and trading groups to scale back on festive lights this year.
It comes after Mr Ryan confirmed he is calling on public bodies to restrict the use of lights in the countdown to Christmas. Business group Dublin Town has already indicated it intends to switch on lights for shorter periods this year, from 4pm until 2am.
And in response to parliamentary queries from Independent TD Michael McNamara, Mr Ryan said he wants public sector organisations to follow suit.
He added: ‘It is expected that public sector organisations might consider this [reduced Christmas lights usage] and similar examples of voluntary demand reduction in line with both national and European targets.
‘I will ask OPW [Office of Public Works] and SEAI [Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland] to actively promote this as a consistent approach in their role in co-ordinating energy efficiency across the public sector.’
However, Mr McNamara said the use of festive lights is ‘best left to individuals and institutions themselves to decide’.
The Clare TD told the Irish Mail on Sunday: ‘Christmas comes but once a year and to children for all too short a time and on a practical level it should also be noted that Christmas lights’ electric usage is quite minimal.’
Mr McNamara had asked Mr Ryan if his department had issued ‘a directive or guidance to local authorities in respect of festive lights being erected in towns and cities across Ireland’ over the Christmas period.
In his response, Mr Ryan said that while no directive has been issued, ‘there are existing examples of steps that have been taken in relation to festive lighting’.
He said the public sector has already taken strong steps to cut electricity usage as energy costs continue to soar as the war in Ukraine rages on.
Mr Ryan added: ‘The public sector has a very strong track record in energy efficiency, having achieved the ambitious 2020 target of a 33% energy efficiency improvement, compared to an
overall economy wide target of 20%.’
He said public bodies are currently implementing a number of energy saving measures.
These include setting temperatures to a guideline 19C; turning off the heat in office buildings at least one or two hours before the building closes; ensuring no ‘non-security/safety lighting’ is in use after 8pm and reduced ‘unnecessary lighting’.
In Dublin, it has already been agreed that festive lights will be switched on later and turned off earlier this year.
However, critics of the move have stressed reducing Christmas lights usage will not yield significant energy savings. In Dublin, the annual Christmas lights operation involves more than a million light bulbs, with 300,000 on Grafton Street alone. Lights are also placed on major buildings such as the Mansion House, Christ Church Cathedral and Trinity College.
However, the Dublin Town group claims the entire Grafton Street lights display, which it says will be bathed in ‘energy efficient spectacular lighting’ with LED bulbs controlled by clocks, uses ‘just one-third of the electricity used by just one home shower’.
Meanwhile, Samuel Beckett Bridge will be lit up using only LED bulbs using a total of 2kw, equivalent to a single vacuum cleaner.
Mr McNamara said the savings would be ‘a fraction’ of the energy used to light up Leinster House in blue and yellow, signalling the State’s solidarity with the people of Ukraine.