Albuquerque on the path to lighting city with LEDs

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Officials in New Mexico's largest city say they are on the path to lighting Albuquerque's streets with LED street lights in an effort to save money and protect the night sky from light pollution. A City Council committee this week approved a project that calls for converting more than 20,000 city-owned lights. The $20 million project still needs approval from the full council. Mayor Richard Berry says over the last 12 months, the city has been working with a contractor to develop a master plan for lighting. That included a complete inventory of the city's 32,600 street lights. Each light was inspected, measured for output and then cataloged into a citywide database. Officials say the conversion to LED lights will be paid for through electrical savings and reduced maintenance costs.