Earth Hour 2008

Earth Hour 2008 – Glowing Success

From 8 – 9pm local time all over the world people flicked off lights and other non-essential appliances to promote electricity conservation and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. According to the Australian World Wildlife Federation, ten of millions of people across the world took part. Sydney, where Earth Hour began, saw an 8.4% decrease in power consumption.

Famous landmarks across the world went dark for Earth Hour including the Sydney Opera House, the Wat Arun Buddhist temple in Bangkok, Canterbury Cathedral in the UK, and the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco just to name a few.

How did Canada do?

Canada had one of the highest participation rates with over 150 cities joining in. Major attractions like Niagara Falls and the CN Tower as well as city halls across the country turned off their lights; even Parliament Hill went dark for Earth Hour.

How much power did we save? Toronto reduced its power consumption by 8.7% beating its target of 5%. London boasted a 2% reduction in power.

BC saw a province-wide decrease of 2% despite a cold snap that had some people turning up the thermostat. North Vancouver had the highest power conservation in province with 7% decrease.

Earth Hour at The Weather Network

In addition to turning off non-essential light and appliances in the studio and throughout our office building, The Weather Network participated by broadcasting outside for Earth Hour. Host, Nneka Elliot and reporter, Kelly Noseworthy took advantage of a clear albeit chilly spring evening to broadcast outside using only one LED light.

Kelly Noseworthy described the experience as “what an exciting night! It was great to see so many people willing to turn out the lights for Earth Hour to show their support in the fight against climate change.” She went on to add “it wasn’t until the sky darkened that you had a true sense of the volume of people taking part, including businesses like the CN Tower – a national iconic building that went completely dark for the hour. Or, how about Toronto’s Pearson airport…it showed us that Canada’s busiest airport can run efficiently on less energy! Let’s all work together to make Earth Hour a part of our everyday life, not just one day of the year!”

Earth Hour & You

Just because Earth Hour is over doesn’t mean you have to stop trying to conserve. Earth Hour sponsor, the World Wildlife Fund is promoting its The Good Life program which encourages simple but significant lifestyle changes to help fight climate change. Here are some of The Good Life suggestions:

• Get a high efficiency furnace - if your furnace is past its prime, consider replacing it with a high efficiency furnace to save money and reduce greenhouse gases.
• Insulate your home - adding insulation to your basement, attic and exterior walls can save on heating costs while reducing your carbon dioxide emissions.
• Install low-flow showerheads - helps to reduce water usage and saves money on water heating.
• Equip your home with smart controls - with new technology you can control everything from you oven to your outdoor lights via computer. To conserve energy you can turn things on only when you need them.
• Consider switching to green power - sign up with a green electricity company that provides your home with power generated from renewable resources such as wind energy and low-impact water power.

For more way you can help visit The Good Life website.