Three Clark County communities have come up with a plan to save each city thousands of dollars, and all it requires is changing light bulbs.
The cities of Camas, Battle Ground and Washougal will swap out a few hundred light bulbs with new, more energy-efficient bulbs. And thanks to a Recovery Act grant, the cities will have the start-up cash to implement the changes that will ultimately result in big savings. The cities are set to receive $135,000 each to replace the bulbs in streetlights, traffic signals, vehicle beacons and city buildings. All of the bulbs being replaced will be saved for reuse.
“With over 2,700 (street)lights in Camas, and when development picks back up, power savings is going to be huge,” said Eric Levison, operations manager for the city of Camas.
The three cities submitted a joint application for funds from the Washington State Department of Commerce. The state awarded $6.4 million in grants to 43 applicants. The grants were available to cities with fewer than 35,000 people, counties with fewer than 200,000 people and federally recognized tribes.
The cornerstone of the cities’ application was a pilot program to replace streetlights with a more energy-efficient alternative. The objective of the program is to test the efficiency, longevity and public acceptance of changing the bulbs and to see if the lights measure up to current lighting standards. The project will also give the cities insight into how much money can be saved by making the change.
The three cities have about 8,000 streetlights. As part of the project, Camas and Washougal will replace about 100 bulbs and Battle Ground will swap out about 50 light bulbs. The cities will develop the details of the streetlight project during the next few months and begin replacing bulbs next spring. Levison said the change should be complete by the end of 2010.
In the city of Camas, which has about 2,700 streetlights, LED lights will be installed in an array of locations like residential areas, downtown, city parking lots and other stretches of roads, Levison said. The exact locations have not yet been determined.
The cities will work with Clark Public Utilities to evaluate the effectiveness of the program. The LED streetlights last about 10 years, as opposed to four or five years for the current bulbs, and use about 40 percent less energy, said Lena Wittler, Clark Public Utilities spokeswoman.
Clark Public Utilities is offering the cities incentives for use of the LED bulbs in streetlights, traffic signals and city buildings. The company will also provide in-kind services of about $15,000 for the installation of 150 LED streetlight bulbs.
The city of Camas will use its cut of the grant money to install LED lights in the streetlights and five traffic signals, replace beacon lights on 17 city vehicles with LED lights and swap out fluorescent lights in some city buildings with LED tube lights, Levison said.
Camas has nine traffic signals, four of which already use LED lights. The grant will allow the city to change the light bulbs in the remaining five signals, Levison. The remaining traffic signal lights should be replaced by spring.
The grant will also save the city some money in fuel costs. The city of Camas will replace the current beacon lights on public works vehicles with LED lights. The current lights require a vehicle to idle to keep the battery from draining; LED lights can function without draining the battery while the vehicle is turned off. The city anticipates it will save about 1,300 gallons of fuel per year as a result, Levison said. Replacement of the beacons should be complete by July, he said.
In addition to the streetlights, the city of Battle Ground will replace 273 fluorescent lights in city buildings with LED tube lights. The LED lights will be installed in public areas of City Hall, and possibly other city buildings as well, said Webb Wilbanks, Battle Ground building code official.
City officials hope the use of LED lights in City Hall will encourage people in the community to use the bulbs in their own homes, he said.
The lights in City Hall should reduce electricity use by 50 percent, Wilbanks said. The city will also install LED lights in a couple of traffic signals.
The work should begin in the spring and wrap-up by the end of the year.
“It’s a demonstration project but the long-term savings for energy will be substantial,” he said.
In Washougal, 212 lights in city buildings will be replaced and LED beacons will be installed on three city vehicles, according to the grant application. Washougal Public Works Director Trevor Evers could not be reached for comment.
The three cities will contribute a total of $59,100 toward the projects. According to the application, Washougal will spend $45,000 toward the cost of purchasing LED tube lighting for Washougal buildings as well as in-kind services of $10,000 for oversight of the three-city project.
The city of Camas is contributing $4,100 toward the safety beacon replacement, which is what the city expects to save in fuel costs in the first year.
Without the state grant, Levison said, the city of Camas wouldn’t have the funding to make the changes.
“I think the LED lighting is exciting,” he said. “The potential for savings and the ability to start to use this in new construction is high so we’re excited to explore that more.”
Marissa Harshman: 360-735-4546 or marissa.harshman@columbian.com.
