University thumbs nose at Earth Hour
By KEN MIDKIFF
Published Friday, April 4, 2008
(http://archive.columbiatribune.com/2008/apr/20080404comm002.asp)

From 8 to 9 p.m. Saturday, we turned off all the electric lights in our house, in keeping with the mayor’s edict and the wishes of the Columbia Climate Change Coalition for Earth Hour.

I looked around our neighborhood, and it seemed that everyone had gotten the message. Every house was dark.

Our three grandchildren were staying at our house overnight, and they were quite excited about the lights being off - mostly because it gave them an excuse to run around with battery-powered flashlights and headlamps. I doubt we saved any money on our electric bill because an hour out of a month isn’t much. Chances are, we’ll need to replenish our supply of AA and AAA batteries, so this was more of a symbolic statement than any cost-saving measure.

But, as our eyes adjusted to the dark, we realized that it really wasn’t dark. Shining in our windows and lighting up the sky were all sorts of very bright lights from the University of Missouri. Particularly glaring were the lights from the athletic complex, but I also noted that Jesse Hall was illuminated. Other lights shone brightly from classroom buildings.

Apparently, no one at MU got the word that all was to be dark from 8 to 9 p.m. March 28. Or, worse, the MU powers-that-be knew of Earth Hour but ignored it.
MU has its own coal-burning power plant, and it is not dependent upon the myriad sources of electricity of the city. But this very independence is contributing mightily to global climate change, pumping tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

Much of the power generated by the coal-fired power plant at MU is wasted, and all that carbon dioxide is being produced for nothing. There is no need to have all those high-intensity lights on at Simmons Field or at Memorial Stadium when nothing is going on at either. There’s no need to illuminate Jesse Hall into the wee hours. Likewise, there’s no need to keep the lights on in various classroom buildings all night long. It is doubtful any classes are held at 3 a.m. It is realized that cleaning occurs during the nighttime hours, but that is no excuse for keeping the lights on when the cleaning crew is not in the building.

In short, not only did MU thumb its nose at Earth Hour, but it continues to use coal-fired energy wastefully. This is inexcusable. All MU needs to do is what our mothers told us: Turn the light out when you leave the room. To which should be added: Become a part of the solution.