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Santa Monica Ferris Wheel, LAX Gateway Pylons Go Dark For Earth Hour

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — The Santa Monica Ferris wheel and the LAX Gateway Pylons went dark for an hour Saturday night, joining other L.A. landmarks to celebrate Earth Hour.

The Pacific Wheel's 160,000 energy-efficient LEDs went out at 8:30 p.m. with the exception of rim safety lighting, recognizing the climate change campaign.

Earth Hour, organized by the World Wide Fund for Nature, an international NGO, states its mission is "uniting people to protect the planet."

Other local landmarks participating included The Getty Center, L.A. Live, the L.A. Convention Center, Shrine Auditorium, The Fonda Theatre and the STAPLES Center, according to WWF.

L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti earlier said City Hall would also be participating.

"Climate change is at our doorstep, and unless we take action now, we  face dire environmental and economic consequences," he said.

The DWP's headquarters, known as the John Ferraro Building, were also to be blacked out.

Other international landmarks recognizing Earth Hour this year include the Great Wall of China, Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament in London, the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong, Sydney Opera House in Australia and the Parthenon at the Acropolis in Greece.

Last year, over 7,000 cities and 162 countries and territories participated.

To view the Pacific Wheel — the world's only solar-powered Ferris wheel — live, visit the Pacific Park website.

(©2015 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)

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