Eden Prairie to Turn Off Lights for Earth Hour

Eden Prairie will go dark for an hour at 8:30 p.m. Saturday in recognition of Earth Hour.

The city will turn off all non-essential lights in city facilities for one hour and turn off the lights on the Market Center Water Tower as part of the world’s largest public action for the environment, Eden Prairie announced Tuesday.

The water tower, Eden Prairie’s most-recognized landmark, will join world icons that have gone dark for the event—including the Eiffel Tower, Great Pyramids of Egypt, Buckingham Palace, Empire State Building and Sydney Opera House.

Earth Hour began in 2007 in Sydney and has since spread to 152 countries, with hundreds of millions of switching off their lights.

This is the first year Eden Prairie has participated. The city says it is “an acknowledgment of its continued focus on actions that benefit the community and the environment.” Eden Prairie encourages others in the community to turn off non-essential lights from 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. Saturday.

To learn more about Earth Hour, watch the video above.