Earth Day

Brian Robertson left Long Beach Airport last Dec. 22 in a 1980 Cessna, fixed-wing, multi-engine aircraft. He took off at 8:05 a.m., and it was supposed to take him six hours and 20 minutes to reach his destination of York Airport in Pennsylvania, where the 38-year-old Huntington Beach businessman was headed to see family. That evening, witnesses in York, just two miles from the local airport, reported seeing the plane spinning through the air out of control just before it crashed into a corn field, killing Robertson.

The Huntington Beach Wetlands Conservancy is celebrating Earth Day with events and the grand opening of the Magnolia Marsh. The Magnolia Marsh is a 41-acre area of the wetlands that was cut off from the ocean for more than 100 years. The marsh was recently reconnected to the ocean with the removal of an earthen levee. The $3.3-million project was funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration through American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds. The event will celebrate the restoration of the third and final portion of the wetlands to its original state with guided tours by biologists, interactive booths and a short film about wetlands restoration.

At the Earth Day celebration at Bolsa Chica a month ago, Laura Bandy and I decided to bring the ocean inland to the teens at the Orange County Conservation Corps who are working toward their high school diplomas. Laura, the education director at the Bolsa Chica Conservancy, offered to do this as a form of payback for all of the free labor that our corps orientation crews have donated to the restoration at Bolsa Chica. Our plan was to bring an introduction to marine biology to them, complete with water-quality sampling, live plankton and microscopes, and a saltwater touch tank with live stingrays and marine invertebrates.

Amid the demonstration-prone atmosphere of the late 1960s, the modern environmentalism movement was born. In 1970, Sen. Gaylord Nelson (D-Wisc.) founded national Earth Day to celebrate and protect the planet. The movement gained momentum in Huntington Beach as efforts to conserve the Bolsa Chica wetlands began just about the same time. “We’ve had a history in H.B. of environmental activism,” said David Carlberg, president of Amigos de Bolsa Chica. “There aren’t too many wetlands particularly of that size ... that have been totally or almost totally preserved.

Send AROUND TOWN items to the Huntington Beach Independent, 18682 Beach Blvd., Suite 160, Huntington Beach, CA 92648; fax to (714) 965-7174; call (714) 965-7176 or e-mail hbindy@latimes.com. Submissions must be received two weeks before publication. A complete listing may be found at www.hbindy.com. SATURDAY The Vibe Tribe Yoga and Wellness Studio will present a yoga workshop for surfers with Peggy Hall from 2:30 to 5 p.m. at 301 Main St. No. 109. Information: (714)

Dozens of handmade bookmarks, made from old jeans to save paper and decorated to puffy-paint perfection, were on sale Friday for $2 and $3 in the corner of a busy quad filled with handcrafted, sustainable merchandise. The bookmark creators, fifth-graders Lauren Fishman and Madeline Damico, stood behind their table in the hot sun selling their wares. Their booth was doing well, they said, despite the competition. About five feet in front of the girls’ table, their peers sold almost the same product — bookmarks made from old jeans and decorated with markers — but the girls came to play.

MICHELE MARR More than 12 years ago Tony Campolo, well-known Christian author and speaker, wrote a book titled "How to Rescue the Earth Without Worshipping Nature: A Christian's Call to Save Creation." The title conveyed the tension between Christians, especially Evangelicals, and environmentalism well. Christians had long tended to shun environmental issues and causes, seeing in them a form of neo-paganism that put nature above God and man, who from a biblical perspective was the singular creation of God made in his image.

When it comes to caring for this planet’s natural resources, 64-year-old Ann Egan, a Huntington Beach resident, will bluntly tell you she’s a late bloomer. “Buy what you want; spend what you want; do what you want. It doesn’t make any difference,” Egan said she used to think. The confession conveys humility and regret. Egan realizes she can’t make up for lost time, but from here on out she’s committed to changing her ways. If she can nudge a few others out of their slumber, so much the better.

The Hebrew Academy of Huntington Beach teaches about 350 Jewish students from preschool to high school. Students are educated in Torah studies as well as secular subjects, but now they’re getting a new kind of education — conserving energy and recycling. With the help of donors, the school has installed 189 solar panels that now supply a significant portion of its power, school Marketing Director Carol Koenigsberg said. The switch has been flipped in recent weeks, and the panels don’t supply just energy; along with a new recycling program started at the school, they’re a source of education about social responsibility, she said.

Brian Robertson left Long Beach Airport last Dec. 22 in a 1980 Cessna, fixed-wing, multi-engine aircraft. He took off at 8:05 a.m., and it was supposed to take him six hours and 20 minutes to reach his destination of York Airport in Pennsylvania, where the 38-year-old Huntington Beach businessman was headed to see family. That evening, witnesses in York, just two miles from the local airport, reported seeing the plane spinning through the air out of control just before it crashed into a corn field, killing Robertson.

Earth Day falls on a Sunday this year. The folks at Bolsa Chica celebrated Earth Day on April 14 with tours, live snakes, and even a bounce house for children. The Amigos de Bolsa Chica, the Bolsa Chica Conservancy, the Bolsa Chica Land Trust and the California Department of Fish and Game put on the event. Vic had a station at the event where he showed people how to survey for migratory birds. Kids visiting the station were shown how to use binoculars, then asked to count the birds on the mudflats in front of them.

The Huntington Beach Wetlands Conservancy is celebrating Earth Day with events and the grand opening of the Magnolia Marsh. The Magnolia Marsh is a 41-acre area of the wetlands that was cut off from the ocean for more than 100 years. The marsh was recently reconnected to the ocean with the removal of an earthen levee. The $3.3-million project was funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration through American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds. The event will celebrate the restoration of the third and final portion of the wetlands to its original state with guided tours by biologists, interactive booths and a short film about wetlands restoration.

Dozens of handmade bookmarks, made from old jeans to save paper and decorated to puffy-paint perfection, were on sale Friday for $2 and $3 in the corner of a busy quad filled with handcrafted, sustainable merchandise. The bookmark creators, fifth-graders Lauren Fishman and Madeline Damico, stood behind their table in the hot sun selling their wares. Their booth was doing well, they said, despite the competition. About five feet in front of the girls’ table, their peers sold almost the same product — bookmarks made from old jeans and decorated with markers — but the girls came to play.

The Orange County Conservation Corps donated a team of seven members to assist with the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve?s Earth Day family fun event last Saturday. The Bolsa Chica Conservancy and the Corps have had a long-standing collaborative relationship, the Conservancy?s Executive Director Grace Adams said, including habitat restoration and education activities. In turn, the Corps members learn more about environmental conservation. A small, privately funded Corps crew has worked at Bolsa Chica since 2006, but future projects are jeopardized due to a lack of funding.

For locals looking for ways to commemorate Earth Day next weekend, there is plenty to do. The weekend will kick off with an all-ages volunteer opportunity Saturday, followed by a fun family celebration Sunday.   BE THE CHANGE The Bolsa Chica Land Trust, in conjunction with the California Department of Fish and Game and the California State Parks Department, is seeking volunteers for native planting and a beach cleanup the morning of April 18. Refreshments will be served at the all-ages event, and volunteers will be able to watch the film “Synthetic Sea,” check out various community group booths and the area’s new interpretive space, and meet the Land Trust board of directors and members.

Amid the demonstration-prone atmosphere of the late 1960s, the modern environmentalism movement was born. In 1970, Sen. Gaylord Nelson (D-Wisc.) founded national Earth Day to celebrate and protect the planet. The movement gained momentum in Huntington Beach as efforts to conserve the Bolsa Chica wetlands began just about the same time. “We’ve had a history in H.B. of environmental activism,” said David Carlberg, president of Amigos de Bolsa Chica. “There aren’t too many wetlands particularly of that size ... that have been totally or almost totally preserved.

When it comes to caring for this planet’s natural resources, 64-year-old Ann Egan, a Huntington Beach resident, will bluntly tell you she’s a late bloomer. “Buy what you want; spend what you want; do what you want. It doesn’t make any difference,” Egan said she used to think. The confession conveys humility and regret. Egan realizes she can’t make up for lost time, but from here on out she’s committed to changing her ways. If she can nudge a few others out of their slumber, so much the better.

The Hebrew Academy of Huntington Beach teaches about 350 Jewish students from preschool to high school. Students are educated in Torah studies as well as secular subjects, but now they’re getting a new kind of education — conserving energy and recycling. With the help of donors, the school has installed 189 solar panels that now supply a significant portion of its power, school Marketing Director Carol Koenigsberg said. The switch has been flipped in recent weeks, and the panels don’t supply just energy; along with a new recycling program started at the school, they’re a source of education about social responsibility, she said.