Earth Day has been around since 1970, when millions of people throughout the U.S. planted trees, cleaned up waterways, and protested the pollution of their air and water, and the extinction of plants and animals around the planet.

There were individual observances of Earth Day in Omaha , but the first big, organized Omaha Earth Day was in 1990, when hundreds of people gathered at Central Park Mall.

“The first three or four of them were huge,” said Tom Foster, one of the original local organizers. Foster said there were parades and bands, and speakers in between the musical interludes. People manned booths to drum up support for keeping Omaha beautiful, preserving the Loess Hills, and preventing the extinction of the black-footed ferret.

At Earth Day 2006 there will be more events, speakers, music and booths. This year’s featured speaker is Jim Motavalli, environmental writer, editor of E Magazine, and an expert of transportation issues. Come to Elmwood Park, between UNO and Pacific Street, on Saturday, April 22, from noon to 6 p.m.

Schedule and information

For more information, see the offiical Earth Day Omaha website.

Ride the Keystone Trail to Elmwood Park

The Omaha Pedalers Bicycle Club is planning a ride to Earth Day. There are two bike routes to Earth Day, one Starting at Democracy Park at 87th and Fort streets and following the Keystone Trail south to Elmwood Park. The other starts at Seymour Smith Park at Harrison and 66th streets and comes north on the Keystone. Riders are urged to gather at either location at 11:00 a.m. The club has provided this map. For more information on the Omaha Pedalers, see their website at www.omaha-pedalers.com.

Information in this article also appeared in the April 2006 issue of the Missouri Valley Sierran