MCT

Stop & Shop markets are offering reusable “Earth Day 2009” grocery bags for 99 cents this week.

Reusable grocery bags?

“You didn’t see that three years ago,” says Paul Beaudette, president of the Environmental Council of Rhode Island, “And 15 years ago, you would have been laughed at. Things have changed radically over the last 30 years, and especially in the last 10.”

Nearly four decades after its debut, Earth Day has become every day. And Baudette, who experienced his first Earth Day in 1970 while attending Rhode Island College, thinks that’s a good thing. “Environmental awareness has grown immensely,” he says. “There are lots and lots of people out there doing things to benefit the environment. . . . It’s becoming the fabric of many people’s lives.”

Back in the early 1970s, Rhode Island was home to some of the most polluted rivers in New England. Decades of unregulated development had turned large stretches of the Pawtuxet, Woonasquatucket, Blackstone and other rivers into the watery equivalent of toxic dump sites.

Then, slowly, things began to change. During the 1980s, Beaudette and Glen Dewell, both teachers in Cranston, fought the federal government for allowing chemical manufacturer Ciba-Geigy to pour toxic waste into the Pawtuxet River. They used their own money to wage the fight and had no support from the state or community groups.

Beaudette and Dewell won. Ciba-Geigy was shuttered, and today the Pawtuxet is clean enough to support stocked trout that are safe to eat.

Today, as president of the Environmental Council (www.environmentcouncilri. org), Beaudette leads a coalition of more than 60 conservation groups, all advocates for the environment. The council’s members range from Save The Bay to the Buckeye Brook Coalition.

“It’s all about how we can work together,” he said.

As they have been from the start, universities continue to be centers for Earth Day activities. Student Action for Sustainability, a student-led environmental group at the University of Rhode Island, is planning an Earth Day Festival on the Quadrangle on Wednesday to promote renewable energy.

Last year’s event featured a rock-climbing wall, vendors selling earth-friendly merchandise and a car fueled by recycled vegetable oil.

“The focus [was] on energy issues,” said Rachel Sholly, an alumna working with URI’s Partnership for Energy group, a sponsor of the event. “Energy is such a hot topic these days, and it’s really such an important issue, we wanted to use this festival to help spread awareness and engage students and faculty on all environmental issues.”

Since the first Earth Day, on April 22, 1970, Rhode Island’s formal observance has expanded to a week or more of clean-ups, environmental education programs and celebrations. This year, for example, there are plenty of eco-friendly activities to chose from, ranging from Roger Williams Park Zoo’s week-long Party for The Planet (through April 19) to an Earth Day celebration at West Greenwich’s Louttit Library on Sunday, April 26.

The zoo’s Party for the Planet observances culminate on Sunday with presentations from dozens of environmental groups, environmentally themed activities and live entertainment. Times for the event, which is free with a ticket to the zoo, are Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.On Earth Day, the Narragansett Bay Commission has scheduled a clean-up on the banks of the Woonasquatucket River in Providence from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. The commission will supply refreshments, T-shirts, and equipment. Meet at the pedestrian bridge near the Blood Bank on Promenade Street.

The Blackstone Watershed Council has scheduled a river clean-up near Manville Dam April 25 from 8 a.m. to noon. Breakfast and equipment will be provided. Meet at Manville Landing in Lincoln. For information, call Emily Soergel at (401) 724-2200.

The April 26 event in West Greenwich will include pony rides, a hike with llamas, live music and other activities at the Louttit Library, 274 Victory Highway (Route 102). It is scheduled to run from noon to 4 p.m., and it’s free. The West Greenwich celebration, sponsored by the town’s land trust ( www.wglandtrust.org ), includes neighborhood clean-ups.

Several other towns, community organizations, and conservation groups are planning clean-ups, too, but their scope may be limited this year, says Paul Beaudette. Traditionally, the state Department of Environmental Management (DEM) provided staff and trucks to pick up bags of collected trash. This year, however, cutbacks in state spending may limit DEM’s efforts, Beaudette says.

The Audubon Society of Rhode Island ( www.asri.org) Earth Day observance is scheduled for Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the organization’s environmental center off Route 114 in Bristol. It will include beach and wetland exploration programs, kids’ nature play zone, the unveiling of the center’s new nature mural, animal interviews and other activities. Admission is $6 for a member adult, $4 for a member child, $8 for a non-member adult, and $5 for a non-member child. Children under 4 are admitted free.

Everyone who rides a bike to the event will be admitted free, says Hope Foley, a spokeswoman for Audubon. The theme is Power of One, emphasizing individual effort.

“Each of us has the power to make a difference in the world around us,” Foley says. “Changing a few daily habits can really add up. Start small, with simple everyday actions, like turning off the water when you brush your teeth. Decisions you make not only impact the environment today, but will also for generations to come.”

She offers five suggestions:

1. Use energy efficient light bulbs in your home.

•A compact fluorescent light bulb uses 75 percent less energy than a regular bulb and can last up to four years.

•Substituting a compact fluorescent light for a traditional bulb will keep a half-ton of CO2 out of the atmosphere over the life of the bulb.

2. Recycle, recycle and recycle some more.

•Enough aluminum is thrown away to rebuild our commercial air fleet four times every year.

•Each year enough paper is thrown away to make a 12-foot wall from New York to California.

3. Turn your thermostat down by one degree.

•For each degree you turn down the thermostat in the winter, you’ll save 5 percent on heating costs.

4. Turn off the water when brushing your teeth.

•You will save your household eight gallons of water every day.

5. Shop with reusable bags.

•It can take up to 100 years for a plastic bag to degrade.

•Only 1 percent of plastic bags are recycled annually.

•14 million trees are cut down each year to make paper grocery bags.

•It takes 12 billion barrels of oil to produce the amount of paper bags we use in America annually.

tmeade@projo.com