Oil and gas exploration, tax subsidies for energy companies, incentives for buyers of fuel-efficient cars, nuclear power – there’s plenty to chew on in the Energy Policy Act of 2005. You know me, though. This isn’t C-SPAN.
Daylight-saving time, let’s talk about that.
I haven’t read the 1,724-page energy bill President Bush signed Monday, but I know this: Come 2007, daylight time will start three weeks earlier than we’re used to in March, and will end a week later, in November.
As an after-dinner dog walker, I say, “Whoopee!” As a parent pushing early bedtime, I say, “Oh, no.”
As an owner of a computer that magically adjusts its clock from daylight to standard time, I say, well, I’ll worry about technical problems later. I never got around to preparing for a Y2K computer meltdown either.
“The more daylight we have, the less energy we use. It is that simple,” Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich., said in April as he introduced his daylight-time amendment to the energy bill. But nothing is ever simple. Energy savings from the switch will surely vary depending on geography, climate and personal habits.
I don’t know about you, but I turn lights on long before sundown on dark, rainy days. Year round, I stay up late, run the washing machine past midnight and read into the wee hours. That’s my free time – daylight or standard.
The argument for the change was bolstered by oil consumption figures from the mid-1970s, when daylight time was extended after the 1973 energy crisis. Observing daylight time in March and April of 1974 and ‘75 saved the equivalent of 100,000 barrels of oil per day during the extension period, according to Department of Transportation statistics cited by the Michigan lawmaker.
Not everyone is thrilled by the change.
Every spring when daylight time arrives, Judy DeMarco sees tired kindergartners at Pinewood Elementary School in Marysville. She reminds parents about bedtime in newsletters home. “I know it’s really hard for parents,” she said. “Families are out doing baseball. They still have to get up.”
Beth Ristig, a kindergarten teacher at Madison Elementary School in Everett, sees more problems from weather than daylight time. “What I notice most are tired kids when parents are inconsistent with bedtimes,” Ristig said. “When the weather starts getting nice, there’s a huge difference.”
No one has to tell me it’s tricky getting 6-year-olds into bed, especially when it’s light enough to see a Frisbee fly across the yard. About 8:45 the other night, my boy was all bathed and in pajamas when I found him outside jumping on a pogo stick.
The change can’t help but add to spring’s almost-summer glee, when homework competes with outside play. Oil-consumption studies? The feds should study the effect of daylight-saving time on grade-point averages.
Steve Smith, owner of Sunnyside Nursery in Marysville, may see a slight jump in business with more gardening hours on spring nights. Even so, he’s no fan of the daylight switch.
“My body has difficulty adjusting. It’s the spring-ahead that kills you,” Smith said. “It takes a couple weeks for my biological clock to be reoriented. You’re just starting to wake up early feeling good, and all of a sudden you’re an hour behind.”
Smith also thinks the change will be a billion-dollar boon for the computer industry, as users seek fixes for calendar systems, DVD players and the like. I’ll do what I always do when I need computer help – ask my kids.
At Flowing Lake Golf Course in Snohomish, general manager Marilyn Woolworth expects a boost in March business. “Most definitely,” she said. “In November, we’re closing at 4 p.m. In the summer, we’re here until they can’t see anymore.”
And then there’s Halloween. Proponents of the change have been heard lately touting the safety factor for little witches, goblins and Batmen. Call me a hidebound Halloween traditionalist. All my life, it’s been dark for trick or treating.
Saving energy? Fine. But a jack-o’-lantern ought to show. We don’t need anyone changing dark to light on Halloween.
Columnist Julie Muhlstein: 425-339-3460 or muhlsteinjulie@heraldnet.com.
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