The U.S. Congress passed legislation that would see Daylight Savings Time (DST) extended for a period of two months every year, in March and November. all that is needed for the measure to become law is for President Bush to sign it and there are no signs that he will refuse to do so.
The purpose of the extension is to conserve energy. Extending Daylight Savings Time will add an extra hour of darkness in the morning when most people are still asleep, and add an extra hour of daylight in the evenings when the vast majority of people are awake. adding an extra hour of daylight in the evenings will reduce the amount of power that is currently needed to provide artificial light during the twilight hours and after sunset. It is estimated that the two month extension of DST will reduce energy consumption by an estimated 2 per cent per year. after all people use less energy when they are sleeping than when they are awake.
Toronto and other parts of Ontario have recorded the hottest June in record and are headed for another record breaker this month. We are being constantly told to conserve energy and we have had and are being constantly threatened with brownouts and blackouts. In between stories of people who have died from heat related causes, the media is constantly telling us to take it easy with the air conditioners. The heat wave that has seen temperatures in excess of 30 degrees Celsius for weeks has put the issues of energy and energy conservation at the forefront of discussion. So you would think that following the lead of the americans would be a no-brainer.
Unlike other issues such as same sex marriage, whether or not to extend DST for an additional two months a year seems to be worthy of debate. What is interesting in listening to the pros and cons, especially the pros, is that energy seems to be far down the list of arguments as to why Daylight Time should be lengthened by two months.
On the pro side of extending Daylight Savings Time, not changing times to conform to the United States will cause problems for many Canadian businesses. Those that work closely with american companies may have to change the hours in which their employees work to keep matters synchronized. airlines and other companies that rely on strict schedules when interacting with the U.S. will be the hardest hit.
Safety studies show that anticipated change will result in less traffic accidents. More people will be driving home from work in daylight rather than dusk or dark.
One of the pros in keeping our times in sync with the americans is that our television schedules will not be screwed up. Let’s face it; there can be no greater threat to our Canadian way of life than if Judge Judy and reruns of Everybody Loves Raymond start popping up on the nation’s television screens at the wrong time. In some reports of the possible time changes, disruption of the television schedule seems to be more important that the potential to save energy.
The biggest negative in changing Daylight Savings Time is that the matter is one of provincial jurisdiction. Getting all 10 premiers and the three territorial leaders to agree on anything other than the fact that Ottawa isn’t giving them enough money is difficult at the best of times. already Manitoba Premier Gary Doer is balking. He was quoted in Maclean’s Magazine as saying that the energy savings will not be that great. Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty, who sees himself not as providing a climate where Ontarians can thrive, but rather as a micromanager who knows what’s best for everybody, sees a problem. McGuinty worries about people and children leaving for work or school in the mornings when it is still dark out.
It is pretty hard to argue with the obvious fact that switching an hour of daylight from the morning to the evening will save some energy. We should stop debating the issue and ensure that the change can be made next November.
Of course there will be those who will be reluctant to follow the lead of the United States because it will be following the lead of the United States. To some, going our own way will more important than the benefits of extending DST.