Thousands Pitch In for the Environment During Earth Day

Eleven-year-old Sheridan Ward did not know what to expect when she left her Oxnard home early Saturday to attend her first Earth Day celebration at Oxnard College.

But by the end of the afternoon, she said, she knew all about water conservation, recycling and promoting a healthy environment.

“I learned that it’s very important to protect the environment,” said Sheridan, waiting in line for a cheeseburger and cold drink in the quad area of the community college campus, which hosted the celebration marking the 25th anniversary of Earth Day.

“They say the rain forests will all be gone by the year 2000,” she said. “So we need to make sure that doesn’t happen.”

Thousands of people across Ventura County celebrated Earth Day 1995, doing their part to safeguard their share of a planet that many say is in danger of ecological collapse.

In Rose Valley, about 18 miles north of Ojai, more than a dozen young trail workers with Concerned Resource or Environmental Workers or The CREW, launched into gardening and cleanup projects at their 10-acre facility. The nonprofit group puts young people to work restoring trails and maintaining parkland.

In Camarillo, city officials joined local businesses in sponsoring the Kids, Moms & More exhibit, which provided information about recycling and reusing materials to limit waste.

Others spent Earth Day 1995 at the Channel Islands Harbor, where hundreds of people attended the third annual Taste of Ventura County promotion, where local restaurateurs sold their fare and competed in the restaurant relay.

That festival continues today from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., with music food and dance throughout the day.

But the two biggest Earth Day observances were held in Thousand Oaks and Oxnard, where city officials staged huge parties that sought to educate residents on the value of conservation and provide families a wholesome place to picnic.

“It’s one of those days where you realize that you have to think of nature in the whole environmental situation,” said Marcas Garcia, a Santa Paula construction worker who was enjoying a free concert at Oxnard College.

“Hopefully, it produces enough awareness to make a difference,” said Garcia, who on Saturday swore off aerosol cans and other ecologically damaging products.

Nearby, officials from the Ventura County Solid Waste Management Department were handing out leaflets that show consumers how to properly dispose of used motor oil.

More than 350 million gallons of dirty oil is dumped into the nation’s water supply each year, one of the brochures said--enough material to fill Ventura Harbor every two years.

“By pouring just one gallon of oil down the drain, you can contaminate millions of gallons of fresh water,” said Nancy Rain, who was staffing the information booth and handing out free disposal kits.

“But we’re getting a good response today,” she said. “People are taking these containers home with them.”

At Conejo Creek Park in Thousand Oaks, doctoral candidate Bob Massey said more people have to consider a company’s environmental reputation before purchasing its products.

“Earth Day doesn’t mean large corporations selling their products and pretending to be green,” he said. “I tell people not to support trans-national corporations.

“They should buy locally and educate themselves about what green values mean,” he said.

On a hill overlooking the event, Bill Brandt of Southern California Edison was showing off a battery-operated Chevrolet S-10 pickup truck.

“I drove it about 15 miles last night and it still had three-quarters of a tank left,” he said. “One day, I think everyone will be driving these. We just need more charging stations.”

Behind a booth several yards away, Berta Hurley of the Ventura County Discovery Center was selling T-shirts and products with Earth-conscious themes.

“This is our first public debut, so we’re trying to get the word out that we’re trying to make things happen,” she said of her nonprofit organization, which aims to educate children about science and the environment.

“I tell people to tread lightly, and consider their actions and habits--the clothes they buy, the cars they drive and the food they eat,” she said.

On a small corner of the Oxnard College campus, one man who declined to give his name stood silently, holding a hand-scrawled sign warning of ecological doom in his own city.

“For Sale: Local Environment by the City of Oxnard--the Developer’s Friend,” read the sign, referring to recent decisions of the Oxnard City Council.

“No Planning Commission, No Public Input, No Rules,” it continued. “Projects Approved Fast.”