Environmentalists to Boycott Earth Day : Protest: One of the county’s most active groups objects to support for the event from Exxon and Waste Management.

One of Ventura County’s most active environmental groups has decided that it will boycott the county’s Earth Day observance this year because it says the event has been corrupted by corporate sponsorship of Exxon Corp. and Waste Management of North America Inc.

The Environmental Coalition of Ventura County decided it will not participate in the May 1-3 events organized by environmental groups and local governments.

“I don’t think Earth Day is to celebrate Exxon and Waste Management,” said Ruth Schimer, a coalition board member.

She said the coalition found it particularly distasteful that the year’s premier environmental celebration was being supported by the nation’s largest trash company, which has a long history of legal troubles, and an oil company that paid $1.1 billion in fines for its ecologically devastating 1989 spill off the coast of Alaska.

But one of the event’s principal organizers said public agencies cannot single out businesses as being environmentally unworthy of backing Earth Day. In addition to corporate and nonprofit contributors, the event is supported by Oxnard, Ventura and Thousand Oaks and the county’s Solid Waste Management Department.

“Public agencies are involved,” said Thousand Oaks Recycling Coordinator Grahame Watts. “We just could not discriminate.”

Watts also defended the decision to include business sponsors in the event as a way to encourage them to recycle waste, use recycled materials in manufacturing and take other environmentally positive steps.

“I don’t think there’s any organization, business or corporation that has a perfect environmental record,” he said. “Where do you draw the line?”

The county’s Earth Day celebrations are scheduled in Thousand Oaks and at Channel Islands National Park. The events will offer exhibits and speeches on environmental issues. They will also have musical and dramatic performances with environmental themes.

After the coalition’s protest, Waste Management officials decided not to contribute money to the event. Now, the company will only provide 10 portable toilets.

One Sierra Club sub-chapter, the Sespe group of the Los Padres Chapter, also decided to boycott the event because members believed Waste Management was a principal sponsor, said Mike Stubblefield, an executive committee member of the group. But he said the Sespe group may reconsider after learning Friday of Waste Management’s diminished role.

The Sierra Club’s Conejo group is participating in the Earth Day events.

Coalition board members said they will not be shaken from their position because this year’s celebration has too many other businesses with questionable environmental records.

Other sponsors include Southern California Edison Co., and 3M Corp. Smaller businesses, including diaper services, a scuba diving business and toy manufacturer will also contribute hundreds of dollars apiece to advertise and hold exhibits at the Earth Day fair.

“We’re not in favor of a bunch of business people that are not environmentally inclined being involved in something that purports to be environmental,” said Cynthia Leake, the environmental coalition’s vice president.

Earth Day organizer Alan Godley, of the Earth Island Institute, said he is disappointed that Watts and other public officials refused to set standards for corporate participants.

“It’s very damaging because the bewildered horde will think it’s OK to start charging up their Exxon cards again,” Godley said, referring to the thousands of people who canceled their Exxon charge cards after the Exxon Valdez spill.

But Godley said his group will not join the Environmental Coalition’s boycott. Overall, the Earth Day observance “will be OK,” he said.

He said he is pleased that organizers agreed that food vendors will serve only vegetarian food and not use any plastic foam cups or containers.