B.C. Hydro is urging Summerlanders to turn off their lights for an hour on March 23 in support of Earth Hour 2013.
Earth Hour, from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m., is an annual global event hosted by the World Wildlife Fund and supported by B.C. Hydro. The goal is to encourage individuals to turn off unnecessary lights and electronics in an attempt to conserve electricity.
“Turning the lights off for Earth Hour signifies that British Columbians want to conserve energy. It also shows that we can use less electricity than we usually do. Conserving energy helps our environment and has the added benefit of saving money on electricity bills,”said Rich Coleman, Minister of Energy, Mines and Natural Gas.
Last year during Earth Hour, Summerland lowered its energy consumption by 2.48 per cent during Earth Hour.
The province’s overall electricity load dropped by 1.67 per cent.
This works out to a province wide savings of 121 megawatt hours, or the equivalent of turning off nine million 12.5-watt LED light bulbs.
“I encourage all British Columbians to power down for Earth Hour 2013 — you might even help your community achieve the highest reduction in energy use in the province,” said Terry Lake, Minister of Environment.
Last year, Revelstoke had the greatest energy reduction in the province, with a decrease of 12.1 per cent.
Earth Hour began in Sydney, Australia in 2007 and has grown to more than 150 countries and territories worldwide.
A total of 511 Canadian cities including Summerland participated last year.
Summerlanders are urged to take part in Earth Hour by visiting www.fortisbc.com/Electricity/PowerSense/InYourCommunity/EarthHour/Pages/default.aspx and registering a pledge to participate.
More information about Earth Hour is available at www.youtube.com/earth hour.