Reduce, reuse, and recycle was a prominent theme at Belmont’s Earth Day festival.
Held on April 29 in Twin Pines Park, the Belmont community gathered to learn about sustainability and environmentally friendly practices. Document Shredding, E-waste drop off, compost giveaway, book recycling drop off, and the San Mateo County Library Bookmobile were all available for attendees.
“There are a lot of opportunities for people to change how they are impacting our community,” said TJ Carter, a sustainability fellow for the County of San Mateo Office of Sustainability.
Carter’s booth included resources and giveaways for attendees to help them learn about sustainability.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the principle of sustainability is that everything needed for survival and well-being depends on the natural environment, whether it be directly or indirectly.
“[Enviormental awareness] can start with people just being informed, doing your part in preventing and reducing pollution,” said Andie O’Donnell, the outreach specialist from the San Mateo Countrywide Water Pollution Protection Program.
Throughout the fair, attendees were able to talk with people from various environmental organizations, such as Recology and the San Mateo County Beekeepers Guild.
Earth Day, April 22, is a day that promotes environmental protection, and many events are held around for Earth Day.
“I think the purpose of today is to educate people about all the ways they can promote sustainable practices in all different sectors, whether it is disposing their trash properly or learning about bees,” said O’Donnell.
According to O’Donnell, being informed about the environment can start with learning about simple things such as stormwater. Stormwater is water that enters from the storm drains on the street and flows untreated into the ocean, bay, or other water sources.
“I’ve seen people get really excited that they can put things in compost or recycling instead of sending it to landfill,” said Rachel Lacey, a waste zero specialist at Recology. “Everyone should always reduce, reuse, and recycle.”
