April 22 is a day of celebrating our beautiful planet, Earth day was originally started in Santa Barbara and is now a global event. And as climate change is growing continuously worse it is more important than ever to be protecting and caring for our planet.
Santa Barbara’s contribution to the history of Earth Day
The history of earth day began on January 28, 1969 when a union oil platform off the coast of Santa Barbara spewed sending over 4 million gallons of oil into the Santa Barbara channel, this was the largest oil spill off America’s coast at the time and is ranked third today. This oil spill killed thousands of sea animals and ruined the enjoyment of the beaches. But Santa Barbara locals came together to clean up the mess and take care of the environment. This led to the realization that we need to take a stand for environmental rights not only for the benefit of humanity but also for the environment’s sake. On March 21, 1969 President Nixon came out to Santa Barbara to look over the clean up and speak to the people about standing for this issue, at around the same time senator Gaylord of Wisconsin saw the oil spill and how people were helping, which gave him the idea to create the concept of earth day.
The first earth day was on April 22, 1970 and has continued on every year since then making this year’s celebration the 52th annual earth day. On the first earth day over 20 million Americans attended teach-ins and gatherings around the country. It Is now an international day celebrated with 193 other countries. Since earth day began it has caused a ripple effect in taking action to protect our planet on an international level including: the environmental protection agency, coastal zone management act, endangered species act, and strengthening clean air act.
Be a part of the solution
Some ways that you can take a stand and help take care of our home include, buying and shopping sustainably, grocery shopping from local stores, recycling and compost, donating to conservation organizations and continuing to educate yourself on the issues surrounding our planet.
I asked sophomore student at San Marcos, Kaylee Burwell how she works to live a more sustainable life and what earth day means to her and she says, “I live sustainability by always using refillable water bottles, avoiding single use plastic bags, and getting clothes second hand from thrift stores. The earth is what we all have in common. That should be enough to want to protect it.”
Earth day is a national day taken to be educated on the issues of our environment, to show our appreciation towards our world and to do our part to protect it. I hope everyone can use this day to come together and celebrate the beauty of this world we live on and I hope everyone has an amazing earth day!
