Calgary,
29
March
2019
|
16:00
America/Denver

City encourages citizens to power down and celebrate Earth Hour

The City of Calgary is participating in Earth Hour this weekend by shutting off lights at City facilities on Saturday, March 30 from 8:30 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.

During Earth Hour, The City will turn off all non-essential and feature lighting at several facilities including:

  • Ad Valorem Place
  • The Calgary Municipal Complex: Historic City Hall, Administration Building, Municipal Building;
  • Calgary Public Building;
  • Dartmouth Place;
  • Manchester Centre Building E;
  • Water Centre;
  • all fire stations.

The City will also participate in a family-friendly Earth Hour event this Saturday on St. Patrick’s Island from 7:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. called Calgary Unplugged. City of Calgary educators will be onsite to share information about water usage and other energy-saving tips.

Earth Hour is a global initiative to raise awareness about how limiting our energy use can reduce our impact on the environment. The City works hard to be a leader in environmental stewardship and is committed to reducing energy use in its operations, far beyond Earth Hour. Some recent examples include:

Shepard Solar Park uses 2,700 solar panels, rated at 400W to produce electricity that directly feeds Calgary’s composting facility. The installation produces enough electricity to power over 185 average Calgary homes annually, while reducing about 800 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions a year. Delivered as a partnership between The City of Calgary, ENMAX and The Alberta Municipal Solar Program, the project is expected to yield an electricity cost-savings of around $80,000 per year.

City of Calgary Climate Resilience Strategy and Action Plans were approved by City Council in June 2018 and outline The City’s strategies and actions to reduce our contributions to climate change by improving energy management and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Learn more about The City's Climate Resilience Strategy on calgary.ca.

The City continues to find new ways to reduce energy consumption within our operations. The City also encourages Calgarians to take simple steps to reduce energy use every day, a list of energy saving tips for homeowners is available on calgary.ca. 

-30-