Dubai: Two of the biggest landmarks, the Burj Khalifa and the Shaikh Zayed Mosque will join hundreds of buildings in the UAE and around the world today by switching off its main lights in support of action on climate change.
Tonight at 8.30pm, hotels and government buildings will participate with residents in Earth Hour by switching off lights for 60 minutes and pledging to conserve resources for the future. Under the patronage of Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) is conducting its Earth Hour Walk at Burj Plaza in Downtown Dubai.
"During the last three years we achieved great results. During Earth Hour in 2008, we decreased the consumption of electricity by 100,000 kw/h and decreased the carbon dioxide emissions by 60,000 kg," said Saeed Al Tayer, Managing Director and Chief Executive of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa), Gulf News reported.
Event festivities will start at 5pm, followed by the ‘Walk' between 8.30pm and 9.30pm. According to the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, simply reducing air-conditioning or using energy-efficient lights, can significantly lower electricity costs. At the Chamber, this alone will help reduce energy consumption of its head office by 47 per cent, saving around Dh5.5 million at no additional expense over a decade, he said.
"We are encouraging Dubai organisations and their staff to join Earth Hour and reduce their consumption of electricity throughout the year," said Rami Halawani, Director, Marketing and Corporate Communication, Dubai Chamber.
Companies' pledge
Halawani stressed that lighting and air-conditioning systems represent the major power consumption sources in buildings, so reducing them benefits the environment and the bottom line of businesses.
Emirates Wildlife Society-WWF also asks individuals, governments, schools and companies to ‘Go Beyond the Hour' by committing to enduring actions, big or small, that they will sustain the future of our planet.
In the UAE, more than 200 companies have signed up — most of whom pledged to go beyond the hour. With events set to take place across Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Fujairah, and Sharjah, the Emirates Wildlife Society-WWF is calling all UAE residents to take action and get involved. Raffles Dubai among other hotels will go dark for one hour by switching off its main lights, including the glowing pinnacle of the pyramid and the terraces.
Etihad will also turn off the lights across its major facilities in Abu Dhabi for one hour. The airline will black out all non-essential lighting in its Abu Dhabi Headquarters, Training Academy and parking during Earth Hour.
What's on: Key events across the country
Earth Hour began in 2007 in Sydney, Australia when 2.2 million homes and businesses turned their lights off for one hour to make their stand against climate change. Earth Hour 2011 public events have also been planned across the country:
- Abu Dhabi Earth Hour 2011 celebration at Corniche Beaches
- Dubai Festival City Earth Hour 2011 celebration at the Marina
- Burj Khalifa Earth Hour 2011 switch-off celebration and bazaar at Burj Plaza
- Sharjah, Al Qasba, Earth Hour 2011 celebration
- Fujairah, Earth Hour 2011 gathering at the Fujairah Fort.
If you're part of the Earth Hour movement, encourage your family to join, too. An average urban household could help light a CFL (energy saving) bulb for 50 days if they observed Earth Hour for just once a week for a year. And if they practiced Earth Hour every day, the energy saved could light up 12 houses for an entire month. Image Credit: Rex Features
