Earth Hour

I've heard about Earth Hour from half a dozen sources so far, including Google (who have made their UK homepage even uglier then usual in its honour). This means it has reached the "Annoying Stunt" stage.

If you really want to help the environment then sitting in the dark for one day a year isn't going to do as much as:

• Switching from incandescent light bulbs to compact fluorescent lamps
• Using more efficient cars, switching to public transport, car pooling, walking or some combination of those.
• Turning electrical equipment off when you aren't using it.

If you haven't switched to CFLs already, then why not spend Earth Hour going to the supermarket (on foot or public transport), having turned off the lights (since you aren't at home to use them) and buying some more energy efficient light bulbs? That will make a bigger difference then sitting around in the dark.

There is a good reason not to - your local supermarket might be tiny, or closed at 8pm. There is always tomorrow though.

Photo Credit: Image by Mulad and used under a creative commons license.