BY ALEX CANTATORE
Turlock teen Aaron Jasso, a Turlock High graduate, was sitting at his computer one day browsing MySpace - as those under 30 are wont to do - when a bulletin came in about an event called Earth Hour, sponsored by the World Wildlife Fund. The request seemed deceptively simple: turn out your non-essential lights from 8:30 p.m. until 9:30 p.m. on March 28 to save energy and send a global message on climate change.
Unlike most people, Jasso did not simply skim the bulletin, click delete, and move on with his life. Jasso visited the Earth Hour Web site, earthhour.org, and signed himself up immediately.
And then he decided to sign up the whole town.
“I get bored so I try to save the world,” Jasso said.
In his Earth-saving efforts, Jasso has already taken the message of Earth Hour around town to retailers, the City Council, and the Turlock Irrigation District Board of Directors - with the help of his friends. Turlock High and Pitman High SAFE clubs have also jumped on board with Earth Hour at Jasso’s urging, and now all the high school students in town will hopefully participate in the worldwide program that began in Sydney, Australia in 2007 when 2.2 million homes and businesses shut off their lights for one hour.
Last year more than 50 million people across the globe turned off their lights for Earth Hour and global landmarks such as the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, Rome’s Colosseum, the Sydney Opera House and the Coca-Cola billboard in Times Square all went dark. This year, Earth Hour hopes that 1 billion households will shut down their lights for just one hour.
“It’s easy; anyone can do it,” Jasso said. “I’m trying not to ask for too much out of people. I think I’d be happy if 5 percent of Turlock turned their lights off.”
According to TID Public Information Division Manager Michelle Reimers, on Feb. 28 between 8:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. the district supplied 233 megawatts of power across the entire TID power grid. A 5 percent reduction, saving about 12 megawatts, would amount to about 120,000 100-watt light bulbs turned off throughout the region.
Jasso is planning a candlelight gathering for a few friends during Earth Hour this year, using the event as an excuse to get together and talk with friends without the distractions of television, video games, or the Internet. The way Jasso sees it, even if you don’t believe in global warming or saving energy, Earth Hour presents a great opportunity for family and friends to enjoy each other’s presence.
Next year, Jasso hopes that with a little more planning and the City’s support that Turlock could hold an Earth Hour candlelight vigil in a local park, letting all the green-minded people in town get together to see Turlock go dark.
It looks like his dream just might happen next year, as the City Council is already on board for this year’s Earth Hour and will be issuing a proclamation to recognize Turlock’s participation at their March 10 meeting. TID is throwing their support behind the effort too, posting a reminder on their Web site to notify consumers of the Earth Hour celebration.
Of course, TID could make Earth Hour an instant success - even if all the local consumers may not be happy about it.
“We could probably turn the whole thing off pretty easily,” said Larry Weis, TID General Manager.
For more information about Earth Hour in Turlock, e-mail Aaron Jasso at aaronjasso90@yahoo.com or call 634-0065. To learn more about the worldwide event visit http://www.earthhour.org/
To contact Alex Cantatore, e-mail acantatore@turlockjournal.com or call 634-9141 ext. 2005.
Originally published in the Turlock Journal 3/7/2009.
Retrieved from the Turlock Journal Web site.