Kohima, March 28 (MExN): What began in Sydney, Australia, in 2007 as a lights-off event calling communities around the world to fight climate change, Earth Hour is now a worldwide movement annually uniting people to protect the planet via its 60-minute switch-off. Earth Hour is held on the last Saturday of every March - closely coinciding with the equinox to ensure most cities are in darkness as the Earth rotates - encouraging individuals, communities, households, and business establishments to turn off their non-essential lights for one hour as a symbol of their commitment to the planet and its well-being.
Climate Change is a global phenomenon. It is caused by emission of greenhouse gases (GHGs) such as carbon dioxide, methane, CFCs etc. The presence of these GHGs in the atmosphere of our planet entraps the heat from our sun causing increase in the temperature of the earth's surface thereby causing global warming. As of today, globally, most GHGs are from burning fossil fuels to generate electricity contributing to about 66% of the total GHGs.
Nagaland state consumes about 120MW of electricity during peak hours, out which about 70% is from burning fossil fuels. About 543kG of coal is required to generate 1MWH of energy which produces equivalent amount of about 500kg of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. Considering local context, about 84MW (70%) comes from thermal based power stations, which is equivalent to emission of 43MT of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. Thus by switching off lights for 1 hour, the state would be mitigating emission of GHGs by about 43000kgs.
Earth Hour 2014 will be held on Saturday, March 29, between 8:30 P.M. and 9:30 P.M. local time. On this hour, let us join millions of people around the world in turning off our lights for 60 minutes to deliver a powerful message on the need for decisive solutions to environmental challenges.
The Department of New & Renewable Energy, Government of Nagaland in a press release appeal to every individual to come forward and show solidarity in joining governments and communities around the world in the fight for a better environment and for the future of generations. “Our action should not stop in this Earth Hour event alone, we must go beyond the Hour to commit to sustainable lifestyles and lasting action in order to create a sustainable planet,” the department stated.
Besides observing Earth Hour for an hour, the department also appeals the public to adopt green energy for all domestic utility from now on in order to mitigate carbon emission in our atmosphere on daily basis.
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