EARTH TO ORANGE COUNTY : It’s a Great Day for Getting Acquainted With Our Own Backyard

If this is April, it must be time to worship Earth.

For 21 years, Earth Day has been a time to be reawakened to the beauty and abuses of this planet, from the vehement protests of the ‘70s to last year’s spirited picnics and beach parades.

But you don’t have to burn a bunch of gasoline traveling to celebrate nature in Yosemite or Yellowstone this Earth Day, which officially is Monday.

Orange County residents have the opportunity this weekend to get acquainted with their own back yard and the wealth of flowers, plants and animals that inhabit the county, which has some of the most diverse natural resources in the nation.

“This will be the only day of the year that we will be able to see nature (in the Back Bay) this close,” said John Scholl, the state Fish and Game Department’s manager at the Upper Newport Bay Ecological Reserve, which will hold a daylong event on Sunday. “It’s really going to be a family discovery day because there will be something for every member of the family.”

This Earth Day won’t rival the spectacle of last year, when the 20th-anniversary event was celebrated around the world with all kinds of hoopla, from a dive-for-garbage in Japan to creation of a mock rain forest in Long Beach. But perhaps that is for the best.

This year, the focus is on families, and parents can take their children to a more restrained celebration that is light on hype and full of education and fun.

Free festivities are scheduled throughout the county beginning Saturday. Families can take a guided walk through Irvine’s San Joaquin Marsh, visit a petting zoo and native snake show at Caspers Wilderness Park, view replicas of rare marine fossils unearthed in Laguna Niguel, or play with a 6-foot Earth ball in Anaheim.

The spotlight this year is on informing adults and children how they can make a difference in their own environment by keeping an eye on their personal habits.

“A lot of people say environmentalism is on the downswing since all the large demonstrations of the 1970s. I disagree completely,” said Peter Bowler, director of the Cooperative Outdoor Program at UC Irvine, which is holding an Earth Day celebration Saturday.

“We are just at a different level now. People are now becoming aware that they individually play a role. Things like (Earth Day) ensure we have a continuing sense of concern and stewardship.”

One of the county’s largest celebrations will be Sunday at Upper Newport Bay, a state preserve that has battled urban pressures, yet still manages to be a sanctuary for wildlife, including some rare birds nesting there now.

Children and adults can learn about nature with such hands-on activities as fishing seminars, tree plantings, arts and crafts and nature walks, during which they will learn the names and details of Newport Bay’s native birds and plants.

Last year, about 3,000 people attended the bay’s Earth Day celebration.

Families can also choose to celebrate Earth Day in one of the wildest places left in Orange County--Caspers Wilderness Park off Ortega Highway.

Caspers rangers have planned a wide range of activities, with many dedicated to children. Youngsters can pet animals and watch a snake show. Adults can take tours through the park, including a 10 a.m. bird walk, but children are restricted to a playground area, the San Juan Meadows and the museum center because of the threat posed by mountain lions.

Another major event will be in Laguna Niguel, where Earth Day will be celebrated at the grand opening of Plaza de la Paz.

The shopping center’s event offers a chance to hear talks by some of Orange County’s nature experts, plus featuring a variety of entertainment including American Indian dances and a rain forest puppet show.

The ironic highlight, however, might be a display showing replicas of treasures--rare marine fossils--unearthed during construction of the shopping center. Perhaps, from the perspective of Orange County environmentalists, that is the most positive thing that will ever come from a bulldozer.