BALIWAG,
Bulacan—Recycled materials and solar lamps highlighted the annual Earth Hour
celebrations here on Saturday night as organizers stressed the need for
renewable energy to save the planet.
At
least 100 replicas of fireflies made from recycled soda bottles and powered by
solar energy lighted the façade of SM City Baliwag during the switch off as
Bulakenyos joined the rest of the world in the annual celebrations.
It
was followed by the lighting of laser finger beams attached to fingers of about
1,000 participants who joined the one-hour party.
Beverly
Cruz, public relations specialists of SM City Baliwag said solar-powered
firefly replicas symbolized the call to conserve energy and save the planet
through utilization of energy efficient materials.
“Fireflies
are known as lighting bugs and they are one of the symbols of environmental
conservation as the insects only thrive in unpolluted areas,” Cruz said.
She
stressed that fireflies also symbolize hope for every human effort to protect
the environment from pollution.
Cruz
also said that SM malls’ focus in this year’s Earth Hour celebration is on the
use of the energy efficient materials and proper waste management practices.
Days
before the celebration, she said that mall employees gathered soda bottles that
were used in firefly replica production.
The
improvised fireflies were later installed by SolarTech Enterprise, a
Philippine-based company that provides functional and reliable solar power
systems.
As
one of the leading local supplier of photovoltaic cells, SolarTech aims to
promote green and renewable energy in the country.
Its
objective is to innovate products from solar and other renewable energy sources
to help wean the world from relying on harmful and carbon-emitting energy
sources.
Meanwhile,
the annual celebration also drew pledges from participants who vowed to
conserve energy by regularly turning off lights, re-use water and use bicycle
as transport especially for short distances.
Just
before the switch off, Shane Velasco of the Bulacan State University
Rainforestation program also challenged participants including local officials
to ensure sustainability of environment related programs. DinoBalabo