Daily Times

Over 7,000 cities and towns across 24 time zones and six continents of the world turned off all nonessential lights during Earth Hour (8:30-9:30 pm on March 28, 2015) to symbolise the global efforts to abate climate change. Earth Hour has become an annual event since it was first started in Sydney, Australia in 2007. Earth Hour 2015 in Australia focused on the effects of global warming on agriculture in Australia. All over the world, March 28th was marked with fund raising events for environmental protection organisations, concerts and awareness campaigns. The purpose of Earth Hour is to inform people that as inhabitants of this planet it is our collective and individual responsibility to cut down on energy usage and carbon emissions. Conserving water and electricity, using public transport, carpooling and recycling are some of the ways in which ordinary people can help slacken the pace of global warming. The point of Earth Hour is to emphasise the immediacy of global warming. This is no longer a problem of the future; 2014 was the hottest year on average since 1880, according to NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Scientists predict that the temperature of the world’s oceans will go up by three degrees Celsius by 2050. The effects of rising sea levels on Pakistan’s beleaguered coastlines, erratic and extreme weather conditions and acid rain are already visible.
However, Pakistan was not one of the countries that held Earth Hour this year. Although WWF did host events in Lahore and other cities, there were no widespread media campaigns to encourage the entire public to switch off their lights. Climate change is drastically and rapidly altering ecosystems, agriculture and weather all over the world. But while other countries are adapting to climate change, Pakistan has largely neglected this pressing issue so far. Environmental experts predict that southern Sindh and parts of Balochistan will be fully submerged in the Arabian Sea by 2050 based on the alarming rate at which the sea level is rising. We need to decrease our dependence on fossil fuels and find sustainable solutions like increasing the capacity and number of hydroelectric power plants, and relying on renewable sources to solve our energy crisis. Domestic, agricultural and industrial waste needs to be recycled and disposed of properly. One of the most pervasive forms of pollution in the country is the growing number of cars on the roads, most without catalytic converters. The best way to reduce vehicle-caused pollution is by setting up safe and efficient public transport networks. Earth Hour will be held again on March 26, 2016 from 8:30-9:30 pm and hopefully Pakistan will launch environmental initiatives and become greener by then. *