We failed Earth Hour, but what about Earth Day?

Perceptions by Gerry Warner

Last Saturday night was “Earth Hour” around the world when everyone was supposed to turn off the lights for an hour and get the candles out to save electricity. Unfortunately, Cranbrook  failed the test.

In that one short hour,  some 121 megawatt hours of electricity was saved in B.C. – the equivalent of  9 million LED light bulbs – but the savings weren’t made in Cranbrook.

In fact, the Key City really blew it because our electrical consumption actually went up during Earth Hour, which has BC Hydro Community Relations Manager Diane Tammen scratching her head.

“Maybe it was cool weather or there was some major event on, but I would like to know more,” says Tammen. “I’d like to know if there was some reason for it because if there wasn’t I guess we’ve got some work to do.”

Province -wide electrical consumption  dropped almost two per cent during Earth Hour with environmentally-minded Revelstoke leading all of B.C. with a 12.1 per cent drop in electricity humming through the wires. Pemberton was next with a reduction of 6.8 per cent in the 91 communities measured during the event. Here in the  East Kootenay, electrical usage fell by 1.22 per cent in Fernie and 1.29 per cent in Invermere and Radium Hot Springs, but increased an embarrassing .14 per cent in Cranbrook .  No other communities were measured in the East Kootenay.

Earth  Hour is an annual global event started five years ago by the World Wildlife Fund and BC Hydro was quick to jump aboard from its inception. Despite the fact that Hydro is now considering building the controversial Site C dam on the Peace River to generate more electricity, the Crown-owned utility is serious about reducing electrical consumption. Over the next eight years, Hydro hopes to meet two-thirds of  B.C.’s  future energy needs through conservation measures and increased efficiencies in its vast system covering the province.

Earth Hour is just one of the many conservation measures Hydro is employing and it has to come as a disappointment when one of these programs turns out to be an abject failure in Cranbrook. Tammen says several municipalities around the province heavily promoted the program, but she wasn’t sure to what degree the conservation measure was promoted here. City of Cranbrook  Communications Officer Chris Zettel says BC Hydro notified the City of  Earth Hour last year and an announcement was put on the City’s web page. But this year the City didn’t receive any notification,  Zettel said.

But without pointing any fingers, it’s clear every single one of us has a role to play when it comes to conserving scarce energy. Yours truly got the candles out during Earth Hour, but I would be the first to admit it was purely a symbolic act and I don’t consider I’m doing near enough to promote a greener world as part of an energy-hog society that is relentlessly using and abusing the resources of Mother Earth, or Gaia, as some prefer.

I don’t buy all the doom and gloom predictions of David Suzuki. Nor am I entirely convinced that the alarming increase in global warming is caused entirely by man and his works. I think natural forces are playing a role too. But I do support 100 per cent Suzuki’s essential message that the obscene affluence of Western industrial society has got to be curbed soon or this badly, battered planet we live on will be overloaded to the point of system collapse and we’ll all go the way of the dinosaurs.

So given our dismal performance during Earth Hour this year, do the good, environmentally conscious citizens of Cranbrook have to wait until next year to redeem themselves? Actually no. Earth Day is coming up April 22 when more than one billion people around the globe are expected to participate in events to promote the sustainability of this planet, the only home we’ve got. The theme this year is “Mobilize the Earth” and organizers are aiming to record one billion “green” acts by individuals trying to save Mother Earth.

Check the media for local Earth Day events in coming days and even if you don’t find one to your liking there’s always at least one thing you can do. Get the candles out, turn off  the lights and rediscover how invigorating an hour of contemplation is.

Some music, a glass of wine or some other favorite beverage might help too.