Earth Hour: A bust?

Was Earth Hour a bust? So it appeared in the San Fernando Valley of California, as demographically close to Middle America as anywhere.

I  stood on my balcony before the witching hour of 8:30 p.m., overlooking a vast landscape of twinkling lights, illuminated apartment buildings, pizza parlors, supermarkets and suburban bungalows.

I waited. Even hoped.

The minutes ticked by. I squinted. Could I see a single light winking off in the distance?

Nope.

I glanced up the hill behind my house. Every home's lights were ablaze. The outdoor bulbs in the garden of my neighbor, a hairdresser, gleamed defiantly. A bright glow issued from the windows of the neighbor across the street, a hospital technician.

8:40 p.m. ... no change.

9 p.m....no change.

How could this be when the World Wildlife Fund and its PR agencies were churning out press releases about how from Scott Base in Antarctica to the Great Pyramids of Egypt, lights were dimming to demand that something be done about climate change?

A billion people might participate, they had claimed.

Our own Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa had held a news conference proclaiming that L.A. would be one of the signal Earth Hour cities.

I woke up this morning and logged on to Google News. The Associated Press -- admittedly with a Bonn dateline -- was declaring "For environmental activists: the message was clear: Earth Hour was a huge success."

"Last night's message from the masses was loud and clear: Delay no more, real action now!" Kim Carstensen, the leader of WWF's Global Climate Initiative, said in a statement.

What masses was he talking about? Surely not the ones surveyed in that recent Gallup poll showing a major drop in U.S. concern over global warming.

Any thoughts Greenspace readers? Will Earth Hour drive climate change action? Did you turn out your lights for a whole hour? Did your friends? Neighbors?

-- Margot Roosevelt

Photo: Earth Hour spurs lights-out for monuments. Credit: AP / Las Vegas Sun / Los Angeles Times

Comments

[kathy]

We're in the SFValley and turned off our lights. We didn't patrol the neighborhood to see if others had.

[edward skwira]

as long as the learning channel continues to support and glamourize the likes of the Duggars and other multiporous women we are screwed.Shutting off a light bulb pales in comparison to the energy involved in a lifetime of Octomom+ families.overpopulation will kill the earth, so where is the wake up call?

[edd]

so because some people in a suburb are too stupid to even know about earth hour; it was a failure? i'm sorry that europeans care more? are you really that surprised that americans fail to do things that would benefit anyone but themselves?

[narby]

I refuse to surrender to primitive darkness because of the emotional tug of a few idealists.

Obviously the vast majority of humans feel as I do. The media reporting on the "great success" of the evening are mere propagandists. I will keep that in mind when reading those sources in the future.

[Teresa Costello]

Nearly all lights were off in my neighborhood in Albuquerque NM. Maybe this says more about your neighborhood than the general population.

[Richard]

I agree with Kathy, Overpopulation will kill the earth. Feel good operations like Earth Hour, recycling, and driving a Prius will do nothing, nothing. It's a bandaid on a bullet wound. In Austin 90 percent of people attending the Earth Day event drove their cars brought there kids and pregnant women. The message is not clear. In my field I travel many parts of the US and EU, people are making more people faster than I could ever imagine and they are all driving more. Even in areas where there is decent alternative transportation. Again, the message is not clear or is simply being ignored. Mass insanity? Laws will have to be put into place and enforced, laws that will control population. It sounds harsh and police state like now but in 20 years you'll be asking why it was not put into motion.

[Barbara Shults, R.N.-Director of the North Coast Animal Welfare Advocacy Center]

I consider myself green minded. My significant other and I have been proactive in many green orientated causes. Host a radio show called Animal Advocate on KMUD. I only became aware of this event in the last month. We did turn off everything in the house for an hour. Observing LA's response is not scientific. New York responded and as did many other cities in the US. Give it time.
I see the affects of Global Warming first hand. I live on what you consider CA's Lost Coast near the Redwoods. Our fishing is gone, wildlife poached and our rainforest has been depleted by a Texas Corporation that did not believe in sustainable practices. And for your info my significant other is from LA.

[Cronos]

Earthour, we usually have to live up with 1- 2 hours of load shedding (power cut ) every day in India

So almost all the ligths are off for that period..

[dooner]

*It doesn't surprise me that people in the LA area didn't participate. They are out of touch with the source of their water, electricity, gasoline, food. Most haven't seen a chicken or cow -- eggs and milk come from the supermarket. Water comes from a faucet. Gasoline comes from a shiney pump at the corner gas station. They will stand with puzzled looks on their faces one day when no water comes from the faucet. They will scowl at the checker when no milk or eggs are on the shelves. They will try a different credit card when the pump fails to deliver gasoline. That is how out of touch they are. There are many like them in the US. They will starve if the global economy continues to collapse.

[Curly]

Earth Hour is a farce. Turning off your lights for an hour will do no good. If you want to do some good take your electric & gas bills add your gasoline bill then multiply the total by three and send that to the government. That is what is going to happen when Obama's GREEN ENERGY plane is inacted. If it is so important to cut down on CO2 now he should order a numver of the coal/gas fired generating plants to shut down. Also increase gasoline taxes to $5/gal to cut down on the miles driven.
All electric cars are not going to do it either because they have to be recharged using electricity from the grid.
Also if CO2 we are dumping in the air today is causing global warming what causet the glaciers that covered mont of NA some 25000+ years ago?

[Natasha]

It's symbolic. It's nice to see famous landmarks and cities take the time of day to participate in a symbolic gesture when they may not have a certain number of years ago, but I see a future of environmental web pages citing Earth Hour as something like a credential. Great, you went to a protest, but what have you really done about X issue besides be a body in support of/against something? It's nothing to brag about. There has to be, as with most things, substance behind the gesture.
My neighbors didn't participate, but I also didn't go on top of a hill and look over a city. What's important to me is that some of the people that did got something from it; I hung out with my little sister for the first time in ages and she really enjoyed the time and asked a lot of questions about the event. Hopefully some of those people will start to ask, "What's next?"

[Meelaya]

Of course we observed Earth Hour and it was a HUGE success in Europe and other parts of the world. If San Fernando Valley doesnt care, that doesnt mean the rest of the world doesnt either

[Taylor Porter]

What a farce. It's obvious that the UN has an agenda when they bald face lie about how much they will save by shutting lights in the UN building. $80,000? When called on it by FoxNews they admitted it was $102.

Climate change/global warming is the biggest income redistribution scheme ever devised.

[clarity]

What is it with people who think they can make accurate observations on the world at large by looking out their frigging window?

[evan]

Even if it had been a success it would have been a failure in actually accomplishing anything, so don't worry about it so much.

[jenna]

One hour of lights off- the news is calling that a success? I've also heard it described as a "celebration".

Give me a break. People know the risks of climate change, but abstaining from electricity for one hour, once a year, is only symbolic. I'll start celebrating when I see people driving less, walking more, buying less disposable items, and pressuring their elected officials to pass more legislation that will actually make a difference.

I didn't turn my lights off because this event is a joke, and I live my day to day life with these ideals- not just one hour on a weekend.

[chris]

What a joke. My wife actually turned a few extra lights on, just to be humorous.

I simply don't believe in man-made global warming. I'm not against making environmentally friendly changes; I'm trying to do sensible things: we recycle almost everything, I traded my larger Toyota Avalon in for a smaller Toyota Corolla, and we try to keep our heat and AC running as little as possible.

But this is ridiculous. Climate change is more about the Sun, and we won't change the Sun by turning off our lights for a few hours. Responsible environmentalism is going to be lost in the lunacy of people claiming the sky is falling.

[mike bennett]

I live in San Francisco and nearly everyone in my neighborhood turned off their lights. There were candle light parties, people cheered, and even some fire works.

Not to sound judgmental, but you live in San Fernando Valley, which is basically a continuation of Los Angeles parking lot...not exactly the moral compass of America.

Call us idealist, hippies, or whatever, but Northern Californians just get it. It's time that La La Land join us.

[Tony]

The Earth was here before everyone appeared and it will be here long before everyone is gone. The environment we all live in is very fragile. We all need to come together as one, globally, to address our own existence and this is one small step in the right direction. Nature is very brutal yet very beautiful and powerful that most of us who live on this planet forget that this is the simple truth.

[thehague]

I wonder how some one could claim Europeans care more than we in the USA do! Remember Europe is a place where two world wars have been fought. Where fighting and discontent continue unabated and who, when Earth Hour was over, turned their lights back on just as everyone else did! They won't even think about this event until next year when they will get in a big ole circle and stroke each other again and self righteously proclaim they care more than "selfish Americans!

Negativity will not solve these problems! Positive events such as "Earth Hour" increase awareness, but until we as humans make concerted efforts to alter our day to day habits the climate will continue to deteriorate!

The problem as I see it is that individuals such as : edd | March 29, 2009 at 09:58 AM continue to spew their negative diatribes we will continue to focus on the wrong things too blame! Instead of constructive cooperative behaviors!

Edd, get real! Your blaming American's is so 70's ish that the only one's who still think that way are in your Commune! Try coming out from under your rock doing something that truly makes a difference!

[hinckleybuzzard]

"Call us idealist, hippies, or whatever, "... I call you what you are...suckers. Morons. Real scientists, as opposed to political whores, have totally discredited manmade global warming...but the late sleepers of the idiot left still have bleary eyes. Wake up, children--you've been jobbed.

[Batavia]

Too many of the commenters here sound like they'd be great candidates for the looming Kenyan Brownshirt Corps.

[Daniel Notlob]

Earth Hour? How stupid are you?

Green on the outside and red on the inside.

Anyone who supported Earth Hour is either a communist or plain stupid. Some are stupid communists. Which are you?

[David Adams]

The lights were not off on Philly. This 'symbolic' stuff amounts to nothing but feeling superior to people who have better things to do than play with light swiches and candles like children at a pre-teen party.
Earth is not 'fragile' and neither are Human Beings. We have survived for eons to reach this point where we are now; lights so we can work at night, energy so we don't have to pound clothes with a rock down at the river and transportation so we can live and work anywhere in our nation. The future, being built on the past, is still growing better in spite of the little children who are afraid of tomorrow.

[Scott]

I'm in the San Fernando Valley. I had all lights ablaze and used the hour to test all circuits. The lights performed flawlessy except for one chandelier bulb, which I replaced. Tested the A/C too, since summer is just around the corner.