Ocean Park Supports Earth Hour for 4th Consecutive Year New Attraction "Old Hong Kong” Brings Collective Memories to Guests and Inspires Green Life

(31 March 2012) Ocean Park has participated in the annual Earth Hour campaign organized by WWF for the fourth consecutive year, to help promote a low-carbon lifestyle. Between 8:30-9:30 p.m. tonight, Ocean Park will switch off all non-essential lights in most guest areas and attractions, including the Rainforest, Amazing Asian Animals, the blue egg-shaped exterior of Grand Aquarium, Neptune’s Restaurant, Ocean Square and the recently opened Old Hong Kong attraction area, as well as all offices and back-of-house facilities.

With the opening of the 40,000-square feet attraction area Old Hong Kong on March 15, guests to Ocean Park can experience and relive the unique streetscape and spirit of Hong Kong in the 1950s to the 1970s. In addition, a poster is being displayed at the entrance of Old Hong Kong to convey the importance of conserving water, which also reflects the problem of water shortage in Hong Kong in the old days. To save energy, Ocean Park has also adopted LED light bulbs in place of traditional light bulbs within Old Hong Kong.

Although the face of Hong Kong nowadays has dramatically changed compared with what it used it be half a century ago, guests can still recall precious memories at Old Hong Kong and take a leaf from some lifestyle habits in the past for a greener lifestyle. Let’s take a look at the classic green tips below presented by Ocean Park mascot Whiskers!

Clothing In the past, a lot of people would only buy new clothes during festive seasons. However, if we purchase well-tailored clothes made of durable materials, we can help reduce the amount of carbon emission generated by producing new clothes. Whiskers’ classic sailor outfit is a great example!  

Eating Hardworking factory girls in the old days used to bring their own multi-compartment rice containers to work. Although these can no longer be found today, Whiskers still suggests us to bring our own healthy lunch box to work – this would help reduce carbon emission caused by eating outside!  

Living In the past, most domestic electrical appliances were relatively simple in terms of functionality, and air-conditioners weren’t common yet. Nowadays technology has brought us a world of convenience, but we should always remember to switch off appliances after use for safety and a more environmentally-friendly lifestyle!  

Traveling Rickshaws used to be the most popular mode of transportation in Hong Kong. Although a lot of options are now available to us today, walking is still the healthiest and greenest way to go around, if you are not going too far. See how fit Whiskers is as he travels to all corners of Ocean Park every day! 

This year, the Earth Hour movement in Hong Kong is keen on encouraging everyone to “Go beyond the hour” and live a sustainable lifestyle every day, beyond the ”lights out“ gesture. To call for public action, Ocean Park has been distributing coasters, printed with the Earth Hour logo, to guests during education tours and at various in-park attractions during the week. Posters and videos are also being displayed to convey the message through the Park’s website and Facebook page. To persuade more guests to step up and support the campaign, Ocean Park would promote the message of Earth Hour in all entertainment shows and electronic tip boards today.

Tom Mehrmann, Chief Executive of Ocean Park, said, “In addition to participating in Earth Hour, Ocean Park is also actively engaged in developing management strategies for carbon emission and setting goals for carbon reduction to protect our environment. Last year, we commissioned an independent consultant to conduct a carbon audit at the park. The result was encouraging as it shows that the carbon emission per capita for an average guest at the Park is 12% lower compared with other world-class theme parks. Since last September, we have also strengthened two waste management measures - by inviting a recycling company to collect kitchen waste from the Park’s restaurants and staff canteens for fermentation, and recycling them into fish food. We also adopted a new approach in recycling used papers in which we would receive carbon credits according to the amount of papers recycled, to help offset the Park’s carbon emissions. In 2011 alone, Ocean Park successfully collected 94.16 tons of kitchen waste and 65,636 kilograms of used paper. Going forward, we will continue to take the lead to fulfill our commitment to environmental conservation."