Earth Hour Sabah: Endless blackouts, so no need to switch off lights

Daily Express 21 Mar 09;

Kota Kinabalu: The call for people in Sabah to switch off their lights for an hour at 8.30pm come March 28 in support of action on global warming may not be necessary - at least to one dedicated environmentalist.

"In Sabah, we already have been practising it for years and against our will," said Datuk Wilfred Lingham in a tongue-in-cheek reference to the sudden blackouts that sometimes results in going without electricity for hours.

"In Tanjung Aru, it can happen any time. Last Sunday it was more than two hours, on Tuesday about one hour and it occurred again two days ago during breakfast.

"So the call is no big deal to Sabah, rather, it appears to be a joke," he said, commenting on the "Earth Hour" call to Malaysians in Sabah by visiting WWF Hong Kong marine biologist Dr Lindsay Porter.

"Every now and then politicians coming over will pledge to do something.

"I've been surviving this long but there is no improvement. But I support the spirit. In fact Sabah should take the lead role (in the one-hour campaign as the population has been 'voluntarily' managing without adequate power all the while)," he said.

On March 28 (Saturday), beginning at 8.30pm, cities and towns in about 60 countries across the world will turn off their lights for one hour in response to WWF-Malaysia's Earth Hour 2009 Project. The aim is to send a strong message to world leaders to commit themselves to reducing the "green house effect" that has led to global warming.

Meanwhile, Sabah Environment Protection Association President Wong Tack said he had instructed members in Tawau, Lahad Datu, Sandakan, Semporna, Sipitang, Kota Kinabalu and all towns across Sabah to send short messages to at least 5,000 households to switch off their lights at the stipulated time.

"We are appealing to as many people as possible to participate in this event," he said. "We are at a very crucial juncture in human history terms of challenge where we should do everything we can to revert climatic instability before it is too late."

Wong pointed to Sepa's slogan which reads "Towards a Low Carbon and No Waste Society."

Omar Kadir, Chairman of the Malaysian Nature Society Sabah Branch, said his committee would meet to work out some action plans of its own.

"MNS has a big following at the national level and since Earth Hour is a WWF-Malaysia initiated, we are putting in efforts to support it by spreading the word," he said.

"Definitely it serves as a wake-up call to conserve energy which in turn translate into less fossil fuels burnt, such as coal, oil and gas and in turn translate in a small way to reduce emissions of green-house gases.

"The event reminds especially people who don't take global warming seriously to start thinking serious about its serious consequences," Omar said.

Omar said one of the biggest threats of global warming is on coral reefs such as Sabah's oceanic iPulau Sipadan which is essentially held together by living corals on a 2,000ft volcanic stump.

"When corals die and disintegrate this mushroom-shaped diving wonder may collapse and the next generations of Malaysians may not se it any more," Omar said.

Recent studies carried out by Australian scientists found ocean pH value had dropped from 8.2 to 8.1 which translates to a disturbing increase in seawater acidity by about 20 to 30 per cent and as a result, sea shells are decreasing in weight because their ability to calcify has been reduced.

The full consequences on the world's tropical coral reefs are yet to be determined but it is adding worries to a host of problems facing mankind.

Earth Hour was started in Sydney on March 31 where more than 2 million households switched of their lights for an hour.

Last year, it spread to 370 cities and towns in 35 countries with an estimated participation of 50 to 100 million people. This year, the target is to take it to 1,000 cities and possibly participation from one billion people.

Cynics may say this is not going to make any difference. But organizers argue that the point is not necessarily Earth Hour but what the world does after Earth Hour.

It may be prudent to mention here that the idea is only to switch off the lights and not appliances like refrigerators - much less medical equipment necessary to sustain human life.