With Hopes of Beating Last Year's Record, Toronto Hydro is Ready for Earth Hour

TORONTO, March 19, 2013 /CNW/ - Toronto Hydro-Electric System Limited ("Toronto Hydro") is encouraging customers to power down for Earth Hour this Saturday, March 23, from 8:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.  During Earth Hour last year, Toronto managed to reduce its use by 193 megawatts or 6.8 per cent (compared to a typical Saturday in March.)

Earth Hour is a global climate change initiative run by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) which calls on individuals and businesses to turn off all non-essential lights for one hour. According to the WWF Canada, Earth Hour began in Australia in 2007 when more than 2.2 million people and 2,000 businesses turned off the lights.  Last year, 1.8 billion people in 152 countries and almost 7,000 cities participated.

For Earth Hour, Toronto Hydro will be shutting off all non-essential electrical loads and lighting at its own locations. The utility will also be tweeting (@TorontoHydro) during the hour to provide updates on how the city is doing.

Customers can turn every hour into Earth Hour by picking up Toronto Hydro's saveONenergy coupons, which will be featured in-store next month at participating retailers for discounts on energy-efficient products for the home, including lighting controls (i.e. dimmers and motion sensors), compact fluorescent light bulbs and power bars. These coupons are downloadable from the Toronto Hydro website and can be used at many participating locations.  For coupons and locations, visit torontohydro.com/coupons

More information related to Earth Hour and various Earth Hour events taking place across Canada can be found at wwf.ca/earthhour. For more information on how to conserve every day, don't forget to visit torontohydro.com/conservation to view Toronto Hydro's full portfolio of conservation and demand management programs for residential and business customers.  And to learn about our corporate responsibility, view the report at torontohydro.com/responsibility.

About Toronto Hydro 
The principal business of the Corporation and its subsidiaries is the distribution of electricity by Toronto Hydro-Electric System Limited. Toronto Hydro-Electric System owns and operates an electricity distribution system, which delivers electricity to approximately 719,000 customers located in the City of Toronto. It is the largest municipal electricity distribution company in Canada and distributes approximately 19% of the electricity consumed in the Province of Ontario.

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SOURCE: Toronto Hydro Corporation

Tanya Bruckmueller, Toronto Hydro-Electric System
[email protected]

W: 416-542-2621
C: 416-903-0440