Green Labels and Standards for Appliances, Equipment, and Lighting

Abstract

Abstract Energy performance improvements in consumer products are an essential element in any government's portfolio of energy efficiency and climate change mitigation programs. As an effective policy tool, green labels and standards (S&L) can be widely applied to improve energy performance of appliances, equipment, and lighting globally. A well‐designed mandatory energy efficiency standard can remove cost‐ineffective, energy‐wasting products from the marketplace and stimulate the development of cost‐effective, energy‐efficient technology. Energy labels can empower consumers to make informed choices about the products they buy and to manage their energy bills, thus transform the market to achieve significant energy savings. Over the past two decades, energy efficiency standards and labeling (S&L) programs have proven to be highly effective in stimulating the development of cost‐effective, energy‐efficient technologies in many countries. Economies such as the United States, European Union, China, and Japan have observed a rapid uptake of S&L programs as the cornerstone of their national energy and climate change mitigation programs. This report has taken a few examples of effective energy labeling systems from the United States, EU , China, Japan, Korea, and Australia to illustrate the wide application of green labels for appliances and prove that S&L are appropriate for most cultures and marketplaces and deserve to be the cornerstone of any country's energy policies and programs.