Londoners set a good example
London Free Press Sun, March 30, 2008\

By JANE SIMS, SUN MEDIA

Patrons at Chancey Smith's restaurant in London enjoy a candlelit dinner as the lights went out for an hour last night across London and around the world in support of Earth Hour, a global effort to shed light on the threat posed by climate change. (MORRIS LAMONT, Sun Media) For an hour, our world seemed a bit darker -- and that was good. Earth Hour struck a chord with Londoners, who powered down and shut off their lights and appliances for the health of the world last night. London was one of 150 communities across the country that joined the global effort to reduce non-essential power use. A quick drive around parts of the city between 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. shed some light on who was sitting in the dark. The ride east on Riverside Drive toward downtown London was cast in an eerie darkness -- the courthouse, the federal building and the John Labatt Centre were lights out. But floodlights still bathed the Middlesex County building. Candles were seen flickering inside a couple of classy King Street eateries, including Chancey Smith's in the Covent Garden Market, which featured some "unplugged" musical entertainment for its hour. However, the rest of the interior of the market was lit up like a Christmas tree. And the lights of Robinson Hall burned a little brighter across the street from the darkened arena. In Masonville, the lights at the mall were dimmer. The Bay and Sears both had extinguished their banner signs. But there were big-box stores nearby with their signs still blazing. The University of Western Ontario got a passing grade, though libraries were lit up for Saturday night scholars. McDonald's across the city turned off their golden arches. Richmond Row didn't seem that much darker -- and both St. Peters and St. Paul's cathedrals were floodlit. The London Convention Centre was in darkness. The TD-Canada Trust tower was also black -- including the logo on top. And One London Place powered down. The biggest surprise was that the lights went off on the biggest, flashiest sign in town. Earth Hour trumped the gigantic Western Fair Slots sign, along with other signage at the fairground that was either off or dimmed. About 70 per cent of Canadians polled said they planned to take part in the voluntary hour-long plug-pull.