On The Road
April 1, 2010
Powering down for Earth Hour in Surrey
Posted by Emily Gibson
Where: Central City, Surrey
I was lucky enough to participate in the City of Surrey’s Earth Hour event on Saturday March 27, 2010. Earth Hour is a global event sponsored provincially by BC Hydro to encourage people to turn their lights off at 8:30 p.m. local time for an hour.
At 7:30 p.m., an hour before we all officially turned off our lights, people began to trickle in with their candles, flashlights, and enthusiasm to Central City.
One woman I spoke to was an elementary school teacher. Her classroom celebrated Earth Hour the day before by turning their lights and electronics off in the classroom.
Another customer was excited to tell me about the different initiatives their employer does to reduce their environmental impact. Every month the company he works for eliminates a particular office supply, such as styrofoam cups and garbage bags. I was inspired by the company’s obvious dedication to conservation and their lofty yet attainable steps to reduce their waste. It is easier to change people’s behaviours one step at a time in a gradual matter than in one drastic moment.
Finally, the moment we had all been waiting came. At 8:30 p.m. all of the lights at Central City Mall – including the lights at the Simon Fraser University Surrey campus – were turned off. We then all turned our attention to the office building above and watched in excitement as the individual lights began to be flicked off.
This year British Columbians reduced their electricity consumption by 1.04% during Earth Hour, the equivalent of turning off approximately 1.4 million lights. And the community who reduced their consumption the most by a whopping 7% was Burns Lake. Way to go Burns Lake! You’re a conservation superstar.
Emily Gibson is a Community Outreach representative based out of Surrey and will be at community events throughout the spring.
