Millions mark Earth Day across the world

By

VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – It’s Earth Day today and dozens of events are planned across Canada to mark the day.

More than six-million Canadians take part every year in events and projects to improve their local environments. Organizers believe Canadians have transformed Earth Day into Earth Week and Earth Month to accommodate all the events being planned.

This year’s theme is “Mobilize the Earth,” with organizers claiming the earth doesn’t have time to wait for governments to institute green policies.

Here in Vancouver, numerous events have been planned.

From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., the city’s longest running Earth Day celebration will take place at Everett Crowley Park. The day will include planting of 1,000 native trees and shrubs, educational games and kids’ activities.

A bunch of activities are planned at Stanley Park.

From 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. at the Stanley Park Nature House on the Lost Lagoon, there will be displays and stories read by the Stanley Park Ecology Society educators. You can use the spot scope to watch for eagles hunting gulls, or the return of swallows to the lagoon’s nest boxes.

At 1 p.m., Stanley Park’s natural habitats will be taken over by alien invasive plants. You’ll be able to help the Ecology Society with conservation weeding efforts.   

At 1:30 p.m., nature educators will take you on an walk to explore the importance of forests to wildlife and people, their function and how they change over time. You’ll also learn how to recognize some of the park’s most important and endearing inhabitants.

Earth Day was launched in the US on April 22, 1970 to raise awareness about environmental issues. It now brings awareness to the many environmental challenges found locally, nationally and globally.

Over one billion people in over 170 countries will be staging events and projects to address local environmental issues.

How to save money while saving resources

Does being green mean spending green? Kim Brand with Scotiabank doesn’t think so.

Scotiabank’s Home Energy Savings Calculator gives you a free customized energy plan. Brand explains how it works using an easy example of replacing your old light bulbs with energy efficient ones.

“It would tell you the cost to do that, which is actually about $90. It would tell you the yearly savings, which is around $95. It tells you how long it would take you to pay back that investment, which is about a year. The great thing is about after a year, you have pure savings.”

Brand adds the calculator also gives you an idea on how much each project costs versus how much you will save.

“A really easy solution is replacing your shower heads with low-flow models. The cost of that is only around $200 and you save about $115 a year. It’s a really great option and an easy way for Canadians to reduce the amount of water you use in your home.”

The free program can also analyze bigger projects, like replacing all your windows or upgrading your plumbing.

Top Stories

Top Stories

Most Watched Today