LED project hopes to turn streetlights green

Wind and solar energy could soon be coming to a streetlight near you - local Danish authorities are looking to reduce their electric bills by finding ways to make their streetlights generate their own power.
A new research project being carried out by a group called Gate 21, which is made up of a number of local councils, hopes that by replacing fluorescent light bulbs in streetlamps with light emitting diodes (LED), and outfitting them with solar panels and miniature wind turbines, they can power themselves.
Work developing the street lamps is a continuation of a previous project in Albertslund Council that saw the municipality install solar-powered LEDs in some of the city’s outdoor lighting.
Streetlights consume about 350 GWh of power each year – or about 1.1 percent of the nation’s energy use, and the communities involved hope it will put them at the forefront of green municipal technology.

Full article is available here. Source: The Copenhagen Post, March 2011