Oman to turn off lights to raise Earth Hour awareness

Muscat: With 172 countries worldwide taking part in Earth Hour 2016, the call has gone out to business and residents alike in the Sultanate to do their part tonight.
At 8.30pm this evening a number of organisations in Oman have already committed to going dark as the global initiative becomes more popular each year.
Lamees Daar, Executive Director of the Environmental Society of Oman (ESO) said that their campaign last year helped save 136,603 KWh (kilowatts hour) of electricity compared to only 20,000 KWh in 2011. With 350 to 375 people expected to take the pledge and join them for their campaign this year, they are hopeful that they will achieve a higher dosage of electricity saved.
“Our target focus is; which is more important than these numbers, the awareness that is raised and the actions people take beyond the tour,” said Lamees.
The Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque has also taken initiative to switch of their lights.
Shangri-La Barr Al Jissah are organising an event on Bandar Beach where guests and visitor will gather around a bonfire and listen to a live unplugged performance.
“Shangri-La Barr Al Jissah Resort & Spa is committed to protecting the environment and its participation in Earth Hour reinforces the awareness of climate change and corporate social responsibility activities as part of its ongoing environmental efforts,” said a Shangri-La representative.
Leading shopping mall, retail and leisure pioneer, Majid Al Futtaim will also take part in the initiative by dimming and switching off the lights for one hour as well as increase the temperature of the mall to a standard 24 degrees centigrade.
“Majid Al Futtaim shopping malls will avoid the emission of 35 tons of CO2, demonstrating the major impact of slight modifications in energy usage. The company's sustainability experts estimate that up to USD 10,000 in energy consumption could be saved in Earth Hour 2016,” said a representative of Majid Al Futtaim.
British School Muscat (BSM) had signed the pledge to take part in the initiative. Many BSM students will go to bed by the time the 60 minutes of Earth Hour begins and the school has also allocated an hour on March 20 to turn off as much electricity as they can.
According to the 2015 Earth Hour Report published by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) over 10,400 monuments around the world switched off their lights for one hour in support of the annual initiative.