This Saturday, the world marked the one of the biggest environmentally-friendly initiatives – Earth Hour. However, while a record number of countries and cities participated in the 2015 campaign, people in many part of the world showed less interest in saving the planet than ever before. The Dubai, on the other hand, companies and organisations challenged the trend with impressive efforts.
Earth Hour 2015’s Success in Dubai
Official data for Earth Hour 2015, shows that Dubai managed to save 305 mWh (megawatt hours) of electricity during this year’s Earth Hour. As a result of the initiative, the emirate managed to reduce its carbon emissions by 183 tons for just one hour. That is 20% more compared to Dubai’s Earth Hour 2014 figures.
Even more impressive is the fact that over the six years in which Dubai has been taking park in Earth Hour, it has saved a total of 1,163 gWh of electricity. In money, that is estimated at almost $205 million.
This year, UAE’s participation in Earth Hour was greater than ever. Apart from reducing electricity consumption, the country also took things one step further and encouraged people to also reduce their water consumption during the world’s most eco-friendly hour.
In addition to that, Dubai broke a new record by introducing the world’s biggest inifinity mirror as part of the Earth Hour 2015 initiative. The seven-square-meter mirror symbolized the emirate’s infinite efforts to fight climate change.
Earth Hour Interest Declining Worldwide
Meanwhile, the Earth Hour campaign registered a massive decline in interest. Even though the 2015 initiative broke all previous record in participation, with 172 countries and over 1,400 landmarks joining it this year, people were generally less concerned about the climate and turning off their lights.
Particularly shocking were figures from Earth Hour 2015 in Canada. British Colombia, for example, saved barely 15mWh this year. Compared to just one year ago, that is a decrease by 77%. Moreover, back in 2013, British Columbian saved 136 megawatt hours or almost 90% more than in 2015. Similar was the case in Ontario, where some cities even stated that reducing electricity consumption during Earth Hour was no longer a priority for them. The reason they cited was the population’s declining interesting in the initiative.
Even in Australia, the country where Earth Hour first started, the initiative did not have the desired effect on society. Although participation continues to be high, the meaning of Earth Hour has begun to blur. Media coverage in the country focused more on saving electricity than on saving the planet.
Vietnam was one of the few countries where Earth Hour 2015 was a success. This year, the country announced it has managed to save 520,000 kWh of electricity. That is estimated at nearly $40,000. Nevertheless, these savings are not measured only during Earth Hour 2015, but for the entire Earth Hour campaign in the country, which took place over the period March 22-28.
Next Earth Hour will take place on 19 March 2016 and it will mark the initiative’s tenth anniversary. Hopefully, the interest in the campaign then will not as limited as it was this year.
