When the first Earth Day was born April 22, 1970, Americans were slurping leaded gasoline through oversized sedans.
Thirty-one years later, Americans are slurping unleaded gasoline through road-wide sport utility vehicles.
While there have been improvements in the way people treat the environment, there’s still work to do, said Kyle Tisdel, a member of the East Lansing Commission on the Environment.
“We’re taking some steps back in some areas, but I think it’s changing as well,” the international relations senior said. “Certainly, by having a vehicle that only gets 10 miles per gallon, that’s not good for a sustainable environment.
“Instead of searching for alternative energy sources, we’re relying too heavily on depletable resources.”
To help clean up the dirt, garbage and pollution, several area groups and centers will be sponsoring activities for all ages to help promote Earth Day on Sunday.
Teri Parks, owner of Bohemian Barber, 223 M.A.C. Ave., said she decided to revitalize activities in East Lansing after several years of empty Earth Days.
“I think people have sort of forgot,” she said. “I remember the energy crisis from way back, and people were conscientious and started recycling.
“We need to remind everybody. We’ve only got one earth.”
By rallying many of the businesses in East Lansing and Lansing, Parks was able to schedule live music from The Flow, Under Construction and Numeric to play in the Ann Street Plaza. Information from seven local environmental groups will be available.
Not to forget about the young crowd, children will be able to make crafts from trash and recycled products and decorate hard hats, “to make light of all the construction” in East Lansing’s downtown for the $30 million City Center Project.
“It’s a pretty good response,” Parks said. “Next year, it will be a lot bigger, with the parade from the high school ending at the new City Center.
“It’s in East Lansing, and that’s cool, but the earth is for everybody.”
In East Lansing, residents have several opportunities to help save the environment.
East Lansing offers curbside pick-up for recyclable materials, or two 24-hour drop-off locations at the Public Works building, 200 Merritt Road, and at Valley Court Park.
“One of the easiest things to do is recycle,” said David Smith, an East Lansing Environmental Specialist. “It’s what I do. Most communities have some sort of opportunity for recycling. Even most instant oil change places will recycle used oil.”
Other Earth Day activities going on in the area have been around almost as long as the holiday itself - and try to contribute in their own way.
Lansing’s Woldumar Nature Center, 5539 Lansing Road, will be holding its 25th annual pancake breakfast this weekend. The breakfast will include Earth Day activities and displays - and more than 5,000 pancakes.
“We’re expecting about 1,500 people,” interpretive naturalist Cindy Fitzwilliams said. “It draws a lot of people. We’re a non-profit organization, so it just helps us stay open and keep doing what we do with environmental education.”
