Local green and greening businesses and organizations get a chance to know the public and each other at the fifth annual Green Fair.
The event, to be held in Armstrong April 16, brings together organic growers, representatives of farmers’ markets, businesses that operate on earth-friendly principles and/or produce environmentally sound products and environmentally-concerned organizations. It is organized by ASET, the Armstrong Spallumcheen Environmental Trust which fundraises for bursaries for PVSS students who are going into post-secondary environment studies. ASET has awarded $9,000 in bursaries since 2002.
It also works with local and provincial environmental organizations.
“Part of our mission is to mentor and educate people of all ages who want to work for environmental change,” said David Derbowka, president and one of the founding members of ASET, a charitable non-profit society. He has worked in forestry, construction and environmental reclamation making old landfills into parks He presently owns Passive Remediation Systems Ltd., which uses waste products as part of growing poplar trees. His interest in treating the earth well goes back a long way.
“I remember when I graduated in 1965 and we were drinking and throwing our beer bottles away. Even then I knew that it wasn’t going to get any better and there had to be a better way. I said to myself, ‘Self, if you have the opportunity to create a better legacy than the one you inherited, you have to do it.’ I’ve done that over the years in a number of ways.”
Derbowka thinks people are more aware of the health of the environment now and want to learn more about what they can do as individuals and collectively and he hopes they will come to the Green Fair to get ideas.
“We have to accept that there is going to have to be change if we are going to survive. Life will be better and healthier with cleaner food and water and less pollution. We have to start working toward that change,” he said.
The Green Fair takes place April 16 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Askew’s Foods parking lot in Armstrong. Caravan Farm Theatre will be there with horses and a covered wagon and there will be a raffle for an earth machine composter donated by the RDNO. For more information see asetbc.ca.
