Save power, join 60-min. switch-off

Business Mirror
WEDNESDAY, 21 MARCH 2012 21:45 CLAUDETH MOCON / CORRESPONDENT


SAVE 500 to 600 megawatts of electricity on March 31 by participating in a 60-minute switch-off as part of the observance of Earth Hour, the World Wide Fund (WWF) urged Filipinos on Wednesday.
For this year, three major cities will participate in the switch-off ceremonies slated in Makati, Cebu and Davao.


WWF-Philippines National Ambassador Marc Nelson has pledged to swim with sharks—in a panda costume—and plant trees underwater while munching on a carrot if 5,000 of his Twitter followers pledge to avoid plastic and reuse shopping bags.


The 60-minute switch-off project will be launched simultaneously in Makati’s Ayala Triangle in Luzon, Plaza Independencia in Cebu City in the Visayas and SM Davao City in Mindanao from 8:30 to 9:30 in the evening.


For the first time, the project will extend to the International Space Station, where Earth Hour Ambassador Andre Kuipers shall stand vigil over Planet Earth as the lights are switched off on March 31, sharing photos and giving live commentary.


Now on its fifth year, Nelson said in a press briefing at The Peninsula Hotel in Makati City that the campaign has taken hold and “I will if you will” pledges are now snowballing across cyberspace.


The concept of “I will if you will” centers around providing a social contract between two parties—connecting one person, business or organization to a “promise” and their friends, family, customers or members to a challenge uniting them behind the common goal of creating a positive environmental outcome.


WWF said that they intend to keep the record set by the Philippines in having the most number of participants in 2011 Earth Hour by doubling the number of participants this year with the help of local government units.


In 2009, the Philippines became the top Earth Hour country in terms of town and city participation, with 647 Philippine towns and cities joining in. Ten million Filipinos saved at least 611 megawatts of electricity—equivalent to temporary shutdown of a dozen coal-fired power plants.


In 2010 the number of participants increased to 1,076 towns and cities, which number was more than enough to retain the title.


In 2011 1,661 towns and cities took part, making the Philippines a three-time Earth Hour champion and an official Earth Hour “Hero Country.”


Since its inception, Earth Hour has grown to a 5,251 city-strong global movement, reaching 1.8 billion people in 135 countries and territories across all seven continents. It is now the largest annual environmental event on earth.


In Photo: Marc Nelson, WWF celebrity ambassador; (from left), Jose Lorenzo Tan, vice president and CEO of WWF Philippines; lawyer Angela Consuelo Ibay, Earth Hour Philippines national director and WWF Philippines climate and energy program head; and Rovilson Fernandez, WWF celebrity ambassador, fl ash the No. 1 sign at the launch of the WWF-Philippines Earth Hour 2012, which will be marked on March 31. Filipinos are urged to join others the world over to switch off their electric power for one hour on that day to conserve energy. Yesterday’s launch was held at a hotel in Makati City. (Roy Domingo)