Ballarat City Council will join the fight against climate change by turning off the lights at major attractions around the city for Earth Hour 2011.

In just this single hour, Council will reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 10.18kg, which equals 204 black balloons.

Earth Hour 2011 will be held this Saturday 26 March between 8.30 – 9.30pm.

City of Ballarat Mayor Cr Craig Fletcher said Council was committed to reducing its carbon footprint and was encouraging residents to do the same.

“I encourage all of the community to participate in this wonderful initiative. It is a great opportunity to enjoy a nice candle lit evening while helping to reduce our carbon footprint.”

As an active participant in Earth Hour, Council will be turning off lighting at Lake Wendouree, the Arch of Victory and the front of the Town Hall for one hour.

Lake Wendouree Promenade and Boardwalk

2100 watts of decorative lighting

3.1kg of CO2 will be saved

Arch of Victory and Memorial Wall, Sturt Street

1800 watts of decorative lighting

2.5kg of Co2 will be saved

Street lights and flood lights from Armstrong Street to Lydiard Street, Sturt Street

3500watts of street lighting and flood lighting

4.58kg of lighting will be saved

Total greenhouse gases saved = 10.18kg or 204 Black balloons

Earth Hour was started in Sydney in 2007 by the World Wildlife Fund in a response to climate change. On 31 March 2007, 2.2 million people and 2100 Sydney businesses turned off their lights for one hour - Earth Hour. This massive collective effort reduced Sydney's energy consumption by 10.2% for one hour, which is the equivalent effect of taking 48,000 cars off the road for a year.

For further information visit www.earthhour.org