Sheffield to switch off for Earth Hour

Published at Forge Today

Sheffield to switch off for Earth Hour

By Sophie Maden
Published: 27/03/2010

Campaigners are hoping darkness will descend upon Sheffield tonight as residents and businesses prepare to switch off their lights to raise awareness about climate change.

The Sheffield is My Planet initiative is encouraging people to take part in the WWF’s worldwide Earth Hour by switching off their lights for an hour from 8.30pm on Saturday, March 27.

As part of the initiative, Sheffield’s Town Hall, Peace Gardens, Wheel and Meadowhall Dome will switch off their lights tonight.

Council Leader Paul Scriven said: "Earth Hour sends a message that it's time to switch to a cleaner, safer, more sustainable future.

“Tackling climate change is a huge challenge but this event shows that when everyone does something small it can have a massive impact.

“Local people have made it clear that they want to take action to preserve our environment, and by switching off a few lights we can all be part of a global phenomenon and send a message to our leaders that it's time to act on climate change.”

The WWF’s Earth Hour demonstration hopes to involve a billion individuals and businesses across the world this year in its energy switch off. Monuments such as the Eiffel Tower and Empire State Building will dim their lights in support.

WWF figures show that that turning devices off at the mains can cut 8% off an annual electricity bill, and quitting standby in the UK would save £700m of energy annually - enough to pay the energy bills of nearly 800,000 homes.

For more information visit the Earth Hour website.