With just one day left until Earth Hour this Saturday, have you made plans to reduce your carbon footprint and take part in this worldwide event yet?

At 8pm on March 29th, Earth Hour asks you to turn off your lights and non-essential appliances for one hour to promote the conservation of electrical energy in an effort to lower carbon emissions. The first Earth Hour started in Sydney last year, and as many as 2.2 million people took part. This year, Earth Hour is spanning the globe for participation, with 34 official sister cities taking part including Christchurch in New Zealand.

This doesn’t restrict all Kiwis from helping out the earth this weekend, here’s what you can do to make a difference:

• Turn off all lights around your house - luckily daylight savings‘ end is still a week away, and it’s not pitch black yet at 8pm.
• Turn off your television, heated towel rails, air conditioners, and don’t forget that computer monitor!
• Have a salad or other meal that doesn’t involve cooking for dinner - go without the oven, stove or microwave for one night.
• Don’t use your car - stay at home or walk to a friend’s place.

Many major landmarks around the country will turn their lights off for this hour - take a look around your city and see the difference we can make together.

Image from Flickr.

In recent days, the publication of graphic whaling photos showing the reality of Japanese whale hunting has outraged the international community and added fuel to the anti-whaling campaign.

Video footage and photograph stills of two dead whales - claimed by some to be mother and calf - have circulated throughout the world. The images were captured by the Oceanic Viking, an Australian ship sent to make a visual record of Japanese whaling activity. The photographs will be used as evidence in planned legal action by the Australian Government, in a bid to stop illegal whaling in the Southern Ocean.

Greenpeace Japan’s website has been inundated with thousands of visits every day from Japanese citizens questioning the need for whale hunting - either for scientific research or as a source of food. While Japanese whalers claim the images of whale slaughter are all part of the anti-whaling campaign’s “emotional propaganda”, the footage has reignited the issue of whaling and triggered outrage around the world.

Mark Rocket, an ardent anti-whaling supporter, said:

Whaling has to stop. For the Japanese whaling establishment to say that they are killing thousands of whales for research is a blatant lie. It is clear to everyone that they are processing these whales for food… because whale meat is openly sold! Do they also want to kill thousands of Japanese cranes or snow monkeys to ‘research’ them?

Whales are protected by a 1986 moratorium; since then, Japan has used a ’scientific research’ loophole to justify the slaughter of thousands of endangered whales. This year, Japanese whaling was halted for 14 days when the Esperanza, a Greenpeace vessel, pursued the Nisshin Maru whaling fleet and brought worldwide attention to Japanese whaling activity. For the first time, media coverage and public debate on the issue is being openly aired in Japan, forcing Japanese Prime Minister Fukuda to raise the issue in Parliament.

Will it be enough to save the whales? To show your support, sign the Dominion Post’s anti-whaling petition or become a Greenpeace Whale Defender.

Image from Flickr.

Anyone who knows me will tell you I’m a greenie at heart, so I was happy to hear about a move by Gull Petroleum to introduce New Zealand’s first commercially available biofuel. Derived directly from living matter, biofuel is a more eco-friendly alternative to petrol.

Gull Force 10 is a 98 octane fuel containing a 10% ethanol blend made from whey (a by-product from the processing of milk). The new eco-fuel is now available from three Gull petrol stations in Auckland - Albany, Kingsland and Wiri - with hopes that it will gradually be introduced to Gull’s 27 other New Zealand sites.

A word of warning, though: only use biofuel if it’s compatible with your car!

The Automobile Association has warned drivers that use of biofuel in some cars could cause fuel leaks, fuel line deterioration and invalidation of the vehicle’s mechanical warranty. Drivers should contact their vehicle’s manufacturer if they’re unsure of their car’s compatibility.

And while the new fuel may be cleaner burning and lower in emission levels, it’s no excuse for fuel guzzlers to consume more! Why not think about reducing your fuel consumption by car pooling, taking the bus or whipping out your walking shoes?

The government is also keen to see us reducing our mileage; the Fuelsaver site provides information on fuel consumption and how Kiwis can save on petrol costs. Along with fuel saving tips and myths, they also give the latest safety test results for makes and models of car in New Zealand.