Ladysmith and Chemainus held a variety of Earth Day community cleanup activities this past Sunday, and I know there were other less-publicized events throughout both communities and in many schools leading up to Earth Day, as well as a downtown cleanup in Ladysmith on Monday.
Earth Day Canada, which officially occurred on Monday, April 22, is part of International Earth Day — the largest, most celebrated environmental event worldwide. More than six million Canadians join one billion people in more than 170 countries in staging events and projects to address local environmental issues, according to the Internet. Nearly every school child in Canada takes part in an Earth Day activity.
More than 100 people took part in the Earth Day activities Sunday, April 21 in Ladysmith, which included a Waterfront Cleanup at Transfer Beach and an Invasive Species Pull at Holland Creek. In Chemainus, about 25 people signed up for an Earth Day cleanup at Kin Beach.
I took a lot of photos on Sunday, and it was really heartwarming to see so many people out and especially to see so many families and young children volunteering their time. There was a great sense of community in both Ladysmith and Chemainus.
A few people commented about how there was less trash on the beaches than they expected. It’s great to think that people’s attitudes about littering are changing —and it’s just as great to think that everyone who took part in some form of community cleanup in the days leading up to Earth Day is part of keeping that good news story going. The Earth Day community cleanups may have just been one day, but they made a big difference, and every activity — whether it was organized by a community, by a school, by a neighbourhood, by a family or by an individual — adds up. When people come to Ladysmith and Chemainus and see clean beaches, clean streets and clean back alleys, hopefully they’ll be inspired to keep them clean. And, maybe there will even be less trash to pick up next year.
— Lindsay Chung
