A resolution urging all residents from barangays, establishments, institutions and the Bacolod City government to participate in the Earth Hour celebration on March 29, was approved by the Sangguniang Panlungsod yesterday.

The resolution, authored by Councilor Caesar Distrito, said that, according to World Wildlife Fund-Philippines, the Philippines has been involved in Earth Hour since 2008.

It has topped global participation since the year 2009, engaging national and local government institutions, major corporations, and every Filipino to do their part in making a formidable stand against global warming.

In 2009, Earth Hour switch-offs had amounted to 611 megawatts, which was tantamount to switching off a dozen small-scale coal-fired power plants for an hour. In 2011, a record-breaking 1,661 Philippine cities and municipalities went dark, and Earth Hour continues to ignite many Filipinos to join in this simple yet worthy cause, it said.

WWF also stated that the Philippines absorbs some of the world's most violent typhoons, and has had to adapt to climate change earlier than most countries, yet, it said.

The act of switching off lights for one hour every last Saturday of the month of March is a symbolic gesture, encouraging people from all over the world to commit to more sustainable lifestyles through smarter choices, the resolution said.

Bacolod City, for the past years, had actively participated in the Earth Hour celebration, spearheaded by various agencies, establishments and the barangays, in cooperation with the city government, it said.

All sectors in the City are enjoined to support the Earth Hour activity by switching off their lights, and if possible, all appliances that use electricity for one hour, from 8:30 p.m. until 9:30 p.m. on Saturday.

With 47 other SM supermalls in the Philippines and six SM malls in China, SM City Bacolod is enjoining the public to join them in simultaneously switching off lights with this year's Earth Hour theme, “Use your Power”.

“Be a superhero for the planet. Use your power to change the world,” the press release added.*CGS

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