Earth Hour, the annual worldwide event hosted by the WWF, takes place this Saturday, March 19, from 8:30 to 9:30 pm. The event encourages people around the world to turn off all unnecessary lights and electronics.
As you can see from the NASA image above Canada and the United States burn a staggering amount of energy every day. How much? It changes every year but, according to the US Energy Information Administration in 2012 the Three Amigos — Canada, the US and Mexico — burned 116,166 quadrillion British Thermal Units. Can you visualize that? I sure can’t.
In a statement, BC Hydro said it is encouraging British Columbians to participate in Earth Hour and monitor their own electricity use using their online MyHydro accounts on bchydro.com. BC Hydro customers can compare their electricity use during Earth Hour on Saturday to a previous day to see if turning off unnecessary lights and electronics makes a difference in their household electricity consumption.
BC Hydro advises adopting energy efficiency and managing household electricity use year-round. Switching to energy efficient products can help make a difference.
For example:
Lighting can account for up to 15 per cent of a household’s electricity use. ENERGY STAR® LED bulbs use at least 75 per cent less energy than incandescent bulbs and last up to 20 years.
The average Canadian home has more than 25 electronic devices that use standby power – this can account for up to 10 per cent of your average household’s electricity use. BC Hydro recommends unplugging unused electronics and using an advanced power bar to manage standby power and automatically turn off multiple devices.
For tools, resources and incentives to help you be smart with power year-round, visit powersmart.ca.
