Bacolod Councilors Em Ang, El Cid Familiaran and Caesar Distrito led the switching-off of lights from 8:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. during the Earth Hour 2016 celebration at SM City-Bacolod Saturday. The event was participated in by various sectors who pledged their commitment to conserve energy and take action against climate change. Ang, who has been present in all Earth Hour activities of SM, lauded the mall's support to the Anti-Plastic Bag City Ordinance she had authored to eliminate the use of plastic bags, while Distrito said he authored an ordinance requiring all establishments to adopt proper treatment of hazardous waste. Familiaran said he also authored an ordinance institutionalizing Arbor Day that enjoins the participation of everybody and requires city scholars, summer jobbers and students of the Bacolod City College to plant trees in vacant lots of the government. Desiree Diel, who represented Dr. Felicidad Altalaguire of the Earth Hour Core group, thanked the participants, who joined the various activities, and SM for its support to the annual Earth Hour celebration. “Climate change knows no boundaries for it affects and will continually affect everyone if we do not start acting now…We are again reminded to continuously work and care for each one by protecting our mother Earth and to shine a light on climate action,” she said. Mae Castro, PR manager of SM City Bacolod, said that during last year's Earth Hour celebration, the mall saved 3,400 kilowatts in one hour, valued at P40,000. Mall manager George Jardiolin, said that due to the varied energy saving procedures, SM was awarded by the Department of Energy the Don Emilio Abello Award. “In the most recent awarding, we earned 56 awards,” he said. Aside from their daily operational procedures that helped reduce electricity and carbon footprints, SM also engages in many other projects geared toward sustainable living and mall operations, he said. Jardiolin said that in the previous year, they saved more than P320 million in energy costs in the whole country, which is largely due to the utilization of renewable sources of energy. Today, they have approximately 30,000 solar panels at SM North EDSA, SM Mall of Asia, and in SM Xiamen, China. SM has 58 malls all over the country aside from branches in China, he said. The Earth Hour activity Saturday started with an Earth Hour Walk from the Capitol Park and Lagoon going to SM City in coordination with the Philippine Society of Mechanical Engineers – Negros Island Chapter, and followed by a series of talks on climate change, energy conservation and renewable energy. Students from Colegio San Agustin-Bacolod, Carlos Hilado Memorial State College and the Technical University of the Philippines – Visayas and other schools were also present to show their commitment to energy conservation and to combat climate change.*CGS BY CHRYSEE SAMILLANO
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