Spring is Starting Earlier Every Year

Date: 07/03/25

After another stormy winter, spring has sprung! The bulbs are budding, the sun is shining, and you no longer need your construction site lighting on from early afternoon!

And if it feels like spring arrives a little earlier every year, then you’re not imagining things, because as a result of climate change, that’s exactly what’s happening.

Spring is starting nine days earlier

A report released this week by the Government’s Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC), shows that some of the landmark events of spring – such as the appearance of frogspawn – are happening as much as nine days earlier than they were at the turn of the millennium in 2000.

Their observations were backed by citizen science project, Nature’s Calendar, who noted a sighting of tadpoles in Cornwall as early as 16th February. Of course, after a miserable, cold winter, most people would think that the early arrival of spring would be a good thing, but sadly, this is far from the case.

Why isn’t early spring a good thing?

Scientists who study phenology, or the the timing of natural events, are concerned that the shifting of seasons, caused by climate change, could have a devastating effect on everything from wildlife to farming.

Nature is a delicate balance, with so many species inter-dependent on one another. Disrupt this balance and the consequences could be far reaching. For example, if pollinating insects fall out of sync with the flowers they feed on, whole species could be at risk. The same is true of insect and bird migrations, which count on the availability of food along the way. 

Without pollination from these insects, crops and the food they provide could be at serious risk. At the same time, a longer growing season increases the impact of weeds and other pests, further impacting farming and leading to a wider use of harmful herbicides. It could also prolong the hayfever season, bringing misery to millions.

Time to spring into action

With Met Office statistics showing that average spring temperatures in the UK have risen by 1.8°C since 1970, there’s never been a more important time to make changes to the way that you operate your site.

Simple, easy to implement changes, such as swapping to solar power for your construction site lighting, can make a big difference to your carbon footprint and to your impact on the environment.

Think Hire can provide a wide range of sustainable construction site lighting, from tower lights and compound lights to flood lights and base lights, to suit a wide variety of uses. All of these can be powered by solar energy, with the tower lights and compound lights supplied as self-contained units with their own high performance solar panels.

Solar power all through the night

Solar powered construction site lighting uses sunlight to light up the dark nights. The solar compound lights deliver an impressive 11½ hours of light from just an 8 hour charge, and the tower lights deliver at least 8 hours of lighting, making them both ideal even in the dull winter months.

Just like the rest of our sustainable energy infrastructure, Think Hire’s construction site lighting is fully portable, delivering flexibility as well as sustainability, even on temporary projects or rolling road and rail repairs.

Help us to combat climate change

An early spring means more than just the inconvenience of having to mow the lawn a little earlier, so we need to do more than just recycle those grass cuttings. Fighting climate change will take real change in the way we operate our businesses and equip our sites.

To find out more about environmentally friendly construction site lighting and how this can cut both your carbon emissions and your costs, contact Think Hire today.

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