Province Urges Participation in Earth Hour

Saturday, March 28, 2009 06:31 AM

Prince George, B.C.- The City of Prince George, and the Regional District of Fraser Fort George have served notice they will be taking part in Earth hour this evening, as will UNBC which figures to save 750 killowatts of energy through this exercise. The University says some systems must be left running for safety reasons.

The Provincial Environment Minister, Barry Penner, is inviting everyone in B.C.to focus on the importance of fighting climate change by taking part in Earth Hour tonight, and turning off the lights from 8:30 - 9:30.

"Turning our lights off for a single hour may not seem like much, but it's a symbolic gesture of global proportions," Penner said. "Most importantly, it reminds us that in the fight against climate change, we
all have a role to play. In these challenging economic times, a single hour with our lights off can also result in financial savings."

The B.C. government will be taking part in Earth Hour by turning off all non-essential lights in government buildings, including the B.C. Legislature, and by offering some energy-saving tips to make every hour Earth Hour:
* Switch to energy-efficient compact fluorescent light bulbs. A 15-watt compact fluorescent produces the same amount of light as a 60-watt incandescent bulb and will last up to ten times longer.
* Instead of leaving electronics on 'stand-by,' turn them off completely when they are not in use. Stand-by power typically consumes 10-15 watts per device. In the average household, this can add up to around 10 per
cent of total residential consumption.
* When the time comes to replace your appliances, choose Energy Star models, such as high-efficiency, front-loading washers and dryers.
* Always turn off the lights in empty rooms.
* Use rechargeable batteries. If possible, choose a "smart" charger, which contains a microprocessor that switches the charger off when the batteries are fully charged.
* Wash your clothes in cold water.

Penner encourages everyone to take Earth Hour a step further by turning off their lights for an hour every week from now until Earth Day which is April 22nd.

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Posted on Saturday, March 28, 2009 06:31 AM in News by 250 News

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Comments

Posted by: YamaDooPolCat on March 28 2009 7:39 AM

Darn, I have to go out tonight, I guess I'll just have to give up my plan to vote by burning some toast in the toaster for an hour.

Posted by: socredible on March 28 2009 8:09 AM

What are we supposed to 'do' with all the kilowatts we're going to 'save'?

Posted by: gus on March 28 2009 8:51 AM

Plug in your rechargeable batteries during that hur and store them. Remember to put as tape over the red indicator light.

Turn off lights in "empty" rooms? All my rooms have something in them. I wish I had an empty room to collect more junk.

If one has empty rooms, they have a house or apartment that is too big. Move to a smaller place and save the money, the heating costs, the electrical cost, etc. etc. If we all did thst we would not haveto build any new places, other than small places, for decades.

Posted by: seamutt on March 28 2009 9:19 AM

Fight climate change, what does that mean? Isn't the climate always changing. So if we fight climate change its going to stay at 75 degrees all year round, is that what they are getting at!

Al Gore must love this with his 30,000 sq. ft. home, one of a few, private jet, 150 ft. yacht. He jets around the the world preaching, save yourselves, give me money, lots of money and I will save you. Folks you are being scammed, can't you see it.
Since world wide globull warming has not worked out, its actually cooling , the term globull warming has been changed to climate change, notice that. Pay your carbon tax and be happy.

Posted by: lostfaith on March 28 2009 10:01 AM

Posted by: socredible on March 28 2009 8:09 AM
What are we supposed to 'do' with all the kilowatts we're going to 'save'?

Exactly Socred, They make it sound like, and appear as, if we all participate in this sheep grooming excercise there will be a reservoir of electricity out there that we can draw on at a later date.

Is there any other means by which we produce electricity in BC other than through Hydro-electricity?
I don't think there are any coal fired, fossil fuel fired or nuclear power generating stations in BC.

Hydro electricity is the cleanest or should I say the only none polluting form of generated electricity there is.
The river/reservoir is what is used to generate electricity.

You all may like being trained like the sheep they think you are into compliance for the financial benefits of the corporations.

Me, I'll be using my hydro generated electricity as I need to when I need to.

Posted by: Harbinger on March 28 2009 10:02 AM

Me? I'm gonna cut a length of garden hose, bury half the length in my frozen yard, and then sit in a lawn chair and exhale into the hose for that hour. Thereby capturing my polluting greenhouse gas CO2 and making the world less closer to global warmth. I think that would be more practical than turning out my lights.

Posted by: DPJ on March 28 2009 10:07 AM

Hope the city does more for earth hour than just turning the already energy efficient tree lights at city hall. That example must have been the laughing stock of the world. For me, I am delivering at the time but will make sure my computers are turned off completely.

Posted by: BCRacer on March 28 2009 11:19 AM

I have nothing left to turn off....and my hydro rates keep going up...so I guess they are soaking some other poor sap for the power that I have been saving....what a scam....

Posted by: acrider54 on March 29 2009 5:41 AM

All the kilowats you save in BC goes to the States, I'm turning all my lights on.

Posted by: Outwest on March 29 2009 11:07 AM

My Electric Heat is just working fine, I have to keep the House warm and the Bank Account low!

Posted by: Palopu on March 30 2009 2:25 PM

If we all turned off the lights etc; where would the electricity go??? Seems to me, that in order to save any electricity Hydro would have to slow down a Generator, or shut one down.( Even then it wouldnt be a savings, because you would lose the power that you would have generated.) That is not likely to happen, therefore I suspect that any electricity saved will go somewhere else and be used, or it will go into the ground.

Hydro wants you to conserve electricity so that they can sell it to the Americans for a higher Price. Dont beleive a word they say, as its all BS.

It would be like Macdonalds telling you not to eat hamburgers, because they would save money by your not buying. Not bloody likely.