LIHU‘E — Kaua‘i will celebrate Earth Day 2013 with a series of cleanups and events in appreciation of both our planet and the Garden Island we all call home. The Friends of Kamalani and Lydgate Park kick off the celebration
LIHU‘E — Kaua‘i will celebrate Earth Day 2013 with a series of cleanups and events in appreciation of both our planet and the Garden Island we all call home.
The Friends of Kamalani and Lydgate Park kick off the celebration by hosting a volunteer park cleanup Saturday. Participants are asked to meet at Lydgate Park’s main pavilion at 7:30 a.m. and bring a water bottle, work gloves, sun protection and sturdy shoes.
“We’ll be dividing the volunteers into teams to take on various tasks around the park,” said Tommy Noyes, the group’s general coordinator. “Those range from skilled carpentry work to picking up litter and tidying up.”
Each spring, Friends of Kamalani and Lydgate Park hosts a community work day tied to the Earth Day celebration, according to Noyes, who expects to have 125 volunteers on hand Saturday.
As a reward for a hard days work, volunteers will provided with snacks and lunch.
“We’ll (also) be giving away 20 breadfruit trees that have been donated by the National Tropical Botanical Gardens Breadfruit Institute,” Noyes said.
For more information visit www.kamalani.org or call Noyes at 639-1019.
Malama Na ‘Apapa will lead an Earth Day cleanup at Koloa Landing beginning at 8 a.m. and is seeking volunteers to collect debris on the beach and in the water, using snorkels and scuba gear.
“We are lucky this year in that the reef at Koloa Landing is very clean,” Director Scott Bacon said. “If you remember last year for this cleanup, the reef was covered with all kinds of marine debris from the heavy amounts of runoff from the flooding … majority of our efforts this year will be to clean up and beautify the boat ramp area.”
A potluck lunch will be served at 12:30 p.m. Those interested in participating in the cleanup must complete a Volunteer Liability Release Form. For more information call Bacon at 482-0683.
Also on Saturday, Malama Maha’ulepu, Kaua‘i Sierra Club and Surfrider Kaua‘i will team up to remove litter from Maha‘ulepu Beach. Volunteers are asked to meet at 9:30 a.m. and bring sunscreen, a hat and water. Trash bags, gloves and refreshments will be provided.
To get to Maha‘ulepu Beach, follow Po‘ipu Road past the Grand Hyatt Hotel, where it becomes a dirt road. Turn right at the intersection and look for banners.
For more information contact Judy Dalton at 246-9067.
On April 21, a Ground Zero Earth Day Concert and Talk Story will be held at Lydgate Park. The event begins at 3 p.m. and is open to all ages.
Performing at the event will be the Sacred Earth Choir, Love Tribe Drummers and Maz and the Mystic Bee. Speakers will include members of ‘Ohana O Kaua‘i, GMO-Free Kaua‘i and Kaua‘i Rising. A potluck lunch will begin at 5 p.m.
For more information visit the ‘Ohana O Kaua‘i Facebook page or call 652-6139.
Kaua‘i Community College will celebrate Earth Day from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. with sustainability and health education, cultural demonstrations and performance, an open mic event, musical entertainment, prize drawings and food and craft vendors.
For more information email knutzens@hawaii.edu or call KCC at 245-8311.
• Chris D’Angelo, lifestyle writer, can be reached at 245-0441 or lifestyle@thegardenisland.com.
This article was updated to correct a grammatical error.
