This evening is the 38th Annual Lighting of Baltimore's Washington Monument. Everything about the occasion including the entertainment and refreshments will remain traditional with one exception; the source of light.
This year, Baltimore Gas & Electric Co. will provide energy efficient LEDs (light emitting diodes), which burn brighter and last longer than the incandescent lights that have lit up this ceremony for the past 37 years.
With nearly 17,000 bulbs on 84 strands of lights, the Washington Monument will shine using only 12 watts of energy per strand as opposed to the monument's old incandescent bulbs which used approximately 40 watts per bulb.
In the past LEDs have been nothing more than the red lights on our VCRs, yet these days it seems their efficiency is unparalleled. Several U.S. cities such as Seattle and Boston have planned to use federal stimulus funds to retrofit streetlights with energy-efficient technology.
BGE says using these LEDs for lighting the monument is part of its overall effort to meet the state's EmPower Maryland goals of reducing power consumption 15 percent by 2015.
Until Next Time,
—Emily
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