SEVERAL IRISH landmarks went dark on Saturday night as part of a global climate change campaign.
Earth Hour, a World Wildlife Fund initiative, saw buildings and homes in thousands of cities, from Sydney harbour bridge to the world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, turn off their lights for the fifth such event.
In Dublin, the stroke of 8.30pm saw Áras an Uachtaráin, the Four Courts, Leinster House and Government Buildings go dark.
Minister for the Environment Phil Hogan, who described the event as “powerful and symbolic”, was at an EU Council meeting in Budapest, where the city’s airport closed a runway in honour of Earth Hour.
In Dublin, Bank of Ireland on College Green turned off its lights, but across the road Trinity College, which offers several environmental science programmes, remained lit up. The lights at Anglo Irish Bank on St Stephen’s Green were out too; although it wasn’t clear whether this was a permanent measure.
Dublin’s Lord Mayor Gerry Breen had pledged that: “All non-essential lights in our civic and council offices will be switched off . . . and I’ve asked them to knock off the floodlights at the Mansion House too.”
While St Patrick’s Cathedral and the Wicklow granite and Portland stone facade of the GPO went dark for the hour, Jim Larkin’s palms appeared upturned in despair at the glowing fast food signs and the empty Clerys department store, which remained bathed in light.
The trench-coated men in the window display of Brown Thomas on Grafton Street, however, stood in darkness well past 9.30pm to mark the event. An open-air bicycle-powered cinema nearby drew a crowd, with organiser Gavin Harte saying: “The message tonight is don’t take energy for granted. Every Irish person uses five kilowatts per hour.”
In Dublin’s Docklands, apart from the Customs House, which was in darkness, the IFSC and the convention centre remained festooned with lights, while the Dublin Wheel, unlike the London Eye, remained lit.
With kick-off for the Ireland v Macedonia game at the Aviva stadium scheduled for 7.45pm, some householders pledged to watch the game in the dark. When asked whether the stadium would do anything to mark the hour, a spokesman said, “All the lighting will be required. For health and safety reasons, there’s not a lot we can do.”
Meanwhile, Cahir Castle and Ormonde Castle in Tipperary joined Donegal Castle and Trim Castle – along with the Eiffel Tower, Golden Gate Bridge and Empire State Building – in switching off their lights. Stormont Castle hosted a lights-out ghost tour.
Tony Lowes from Friends of the Irish Environment said: “We’re disappointed with the results we’ve seen so far. Hits to our website were down 30 per cent on last year – this would indicate that there weren’t enough people taking part here.”
Mr Lowes said the economy could be a factor: “It’s very hard for people to get their head above their immediate problems. Environmental issues are perhaps less important than they were, and that’s disturbing.”
