Earth Day April 22, 2002

Minister Kevin Aylward will be participating in Earth Day celebrations at Mary Queen of Peace School to celebrate International Earth Day. The first Earth Day was celebrated in the United States on April 22, 1970. There are presently 500 million people in 180 countries celebrating International Earth Day.

The children at Mary Queen of Peace School will be creating a virtual flower garden. Each classroom will grow a different variety of flowers and each student will grow his/her own plant. Students will take digital photographs of the process of plant growth and create a Web site describing the growth process and provide information about the variety of flowers they grew. At the end of the project, the plants will be donated to senior citizens, sold to parents and planted outside the school.

"This project fits perfectly with Earth Day Celebrations because it provides an opportunity for the children to celebrate the earth," said Minister Aylward. "It is directly related to the science curriculum at each grade level from kindergarten to grade six. Mary Queen of Peace school completed a Plants of Newfoundland Project last year and has received feedback from around the world on the value of the project. The virtual flower garden is a natural follow-up."

On April 22, people of all ages across the country will participate in events celebrating our planet and take part in community projects that restore and protect nature�s beauty. There are celebrations planned throughout the province. The Earth Day Committee in Corner Brook has sent information to all schools in the school district and to provincial libraries.

"The theme of this year�s Earth Day is Zero Waste. The goal is to go beyond "Reduce, Reuse and Recycle" and stop waste from being produced in the first place" said Minister Aylward. "People are being asked to change the way they think about the earth�s resources. We need to start thinking about the actual cost of the things we buy, including not only the monetary cost, but also the cost of disposal and the impact it makes on our environment. And instead of thinking of ways to dispose of our garbage, we need to come up with ways to create less of it."

Media contact: Cynthia Layden Barron, Communications, (709) 729-2575.

2002 04 19                         3:20 p.m.