Officials of the Ozone Unit of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have called on the public to use power judiciously to conserve energy to save the depletion of the Ozone substance.

They noted that man’s activities over the years had contributed to the depletion of the Ozone layer, and called for a halt to the practice, in order to save the climatic environment from total destruction.

The officials, Mr. Johnson Bennet Hasford, National Consultant, and Mr Emmanuel Osae-Quansah, Project Coordinator, made the call at an educational programme on climate change and Ozone depletion for selected second cycle students in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis.

The students were drawn from Sekondi College, Fijai, Archbishop Porters, Diabene, Ghana Secondary Technical, and Takoradi Secondary Schools, as part of a programme to educate the public on energy conservation by the EPA.

The two officials who spoke intermittently, said Ghana has already joined other countries to take drastic measures to save energy, as well as recover the Ozone depletion, to protect the climatic environment for the present and future generations.

Among the measures taken are the phasing out of old refrigerators that have high energy consumption level for the energy saving ones, hence the campaign for the public to send their old fridges to designated places for replacement.

As the nation is going through power challenges, Mr Hasford and Mr Osae-Quansah stressed the need for consumers to supplement government’s efforts at solving the problem, by putting out power when they are not in need.

They educated the students on the efficient use of electricity and refrigerators, warning against the use of sharp metal objects to remove anything from the freezers while there is the need to cultivate the habit of defrosting fridges at least twice a month, as over freezing consumes much electricity. Refrigerators must also not be placed closer to the wall.

On electricity, the two experts advised the public not to rush to switch on power immediately power is restored, but wait for about 20 minutes, since it can create problems due to the volume of pressure associated with power fluctuations.

Mr. Shine Fiagome, Acting Western Regional Director of the EPA, said Ghana as a member of the United Nations, has ratified some conventions that mandate the nation to address issues related to climate and the depletion of the ozone layer.

The Agency has put in place a regulation to manage ozone depletion substance which is the management of depleting substance.

Mr. Fiagome indicated that the educational institutions have been targeted together with other related bodies for the sensitization programme, so that they in turn educate the rest of the masses on the judicious and efficient use of power, in order to save Ghana from going through power challenges.