Get on the Water for Earth Day With I Heart Oakland-Alameda Estuary
April 22 is Earth Day. The official website Earthday.org tells us the designated day is “a reminder of the importance of environmental conservation and sustainability” and serves as an invitation for people around the world to join together and take action for a healthier planet and brighter future. This year’s Earth Day theme is Planet vs. Plastics, and the I Heart Oakland-Alameda Estuary group is inviting us all to take part in their project for this year’s cleanup event on Saturday, April 20. In what’s presented as a “Grand Garbage-Go-Getting Adventure,” participants can walk and collect trash from the accessible shorelines, or launch a kayak or SUP to clean up the hard-to-reach Oakland Estuary beaches.
Mary Spicer of I Heart Oakland-Alameda Estuary says there’s a lot of debris from the February storms, and people are encouraged to connect with nature and protecting the planet by cleaning the waterways, all while “having FUN with your community.
“We call our events ‘Long Haul Cleanups.’ We go out for a long time and physically work hard so that we clear up to 3,000 lbs of garbage from the shores,” Mary says.
Put your name down for the Earth Day, Walk, Kayak & SUP here: Oakland Earth Day
When: Saturday April 20. 10 a.m.–1:15 p.m.
Meet at: Jack London Aquatic Center, 115 Embarcadero Oakland, CA 94607.
If you have questions you can get in touch via text: (510) 283-4224 or email: [email protected].
For kayak reservations call California Canoe & Kayak: (510) 893-7833.
Mary included a link to an interview with Marine Mammal Center research biologist Bill Keener, who works in the center’s Cetacean Conservation Biology program. Keener talks about the country’s last whaling station, a submerged net under the Golden Gate Bridge, gray whales visiting the the East Bay’s shallow verges in 2023, and how dolphins are conscious breathers. Tune in here.
When we really put thought into this idea of coming together for a healthier planet, we recognize that ultimately we’re trying to save ourselves. We need our planet and its diverse natural ecosystems to survive. So why wouldn’t we want to take care of it?
Protect Nature 🐟 🧤 Stop the Debris Flow
