Detroit Uses LEDs to Reduce Emissions, Stimulate the Economy

March 15, 2017 by Shanna Edberg

detroitDetroit has added 65,000 LED lights to replace old, broken-down sodium lamps across the city. The new lights save the city of Detroit $3 million in electricity bills and cut carbon emissions by 40,000 tons per year. They even discourage crime because they replace copper wiring with aluminum, so there is no incentive to strip the wires. Bringing back lighting to dark neighborhoods has increased traffic to local shops and restaurants and restored trust in the city.

Climate Protection: Reduces carbon emissions Energy & Mobility: Saves energy Jobs & Assets: Revitalizes neighborhoods and businesses Health, Well-Being, & Safety: Increases safety Connection: Encourages residents to explore the city and local businesses

This post is part of a series on examples of multisolving, or climate-smart policies that simultaneously work to mitigate climate change while providing co-benefits such as the ones described above. The multiple benefits analysis was done using the FLOWER framework.