Pyramids to go dark for Earth Hour
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The Pyramids and the Sphinx, normally bathed in the golden glow of high-powered floodlights, will go dark for an hour on Saturday, in a symbolic statement Egyptian environmentalists hope might indirectly save the Nile Delta from inundation. The World Bank has warned that Egypt faces “catastrophic” consequences from global warming.
A rise of one meter in the sea level of the Mediterranean would force about 10.5 per cent of Egypt’s population from their homes and would harm the country’s agriculture sector, as many of Egypt’s crops, including wheat and rice, are grown on the Delta’s rich soil.
So it is perhaps no surprise to see the government endorsing Earth Hour, an initiative started by the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF) in 2007 as a means of raising awareness of global warming.
This year, Cairo will join some 2,500 cities around the world that have pledged to turn off their lights on Saturday. The Library of Alexandria, on Egypt’s northern coast, will join Broadway theatres in New York City, the Eiffel Tower in Paris and the Sydney Opera House in turning off their lights in support of Earth Hour.
Private businesses in Egypt are taking part too. Visitors to the Meridien hotel chain’s restaurants in Egypt will be forced to spend a romantic evening on Saturday, as the chain announced it would rely on candle light to observe Earth Hour. Customers will also get a free drink, the chain said.
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