Fun Facts About Earth Day
Earth Day Fun Facts
We all share this little blue marble called Earth. Every human trodding her firm, supportive crust owes a debt of gratitude to the life-giving food, water, and air she provides. Crucial it is to conserve, reuse, reduce, and recycle in order to leave the planet in the same condition in which we found it.
We look forward in great anticipation of celebrating Earth Day by celebrating a few simple fun facts in honor of our precious planet. Here are a few precious fun facts offered up to aficionados of the celestial orb upon which we all depend. It's the only planet we have: when we use it up, it's gone for good.
There are many ways to observe and celebrate Earth Day. Some of them don't require cutting down trees to make paper or burning fossil fuels to drive somewhere
Go Green With the USPS
The United States Postal Service (USPS) has issued a commemorative stamp series in honor of Earth Day and the place where all the letters are delivered. Virtually every customer that uses the USPS lives on Earth, so they truly understand the importance of honoring our planet.
The 16-stamp series communicates over 15 vital messages such as:
- Plant a Tree,
- Take Public Transportation, and
- Adjust your Thermostat.
The USPS includes a fleet of over 215,000 vehicles and spends over 6 billion dollars on fuel each year, including Earth Day.
Fully 46% of Americans Favor Nuclear Power
A poll commissioned by the Civil Society Institute (CSI) revealed that at least 46% of
Americans were in favor of expanding nuclear energy. A company called ORC International called 814 Americans and asked them questions about nuclear power.
Cancún Climate Summit Held in Cancún
Hundreds of scientists, journalists, tourists, and other representatives of the Earth convened in Cancún, Mexico to throw a climate summit.
The conference-goers agreed to commit 10 billion dollars of other people's money to underdeveloped countries so they could defend themselves against climate change.
Carbon emissions were discussed at length during the summit. Russia declared it would not sign on to a subsequent term of the
Kyoto protocol unless the world's two big carbon emitters, China and the United States, were
also legally bound to participate.
Pennies for the Planet
Pennies for the Planet represents a national campaign to support conservation projects. Children collect pennies, which are funneled to programs that help support wild places and wildlife in the United States.
The program is administered by the National Audubon Society, which is where all the money should be mailed. They plan to bundle the contributions and dole them out to worthy environmental causes. They prefer checks and money orders, please. They advise kids to give their accumulated pennies to an adult, then ask for a check.
A Green Budget
In the spirit of federal budgeting, Earth Day Network and over 33 partner organizations provided an alternative budgeting strategy titled "Green Budget 2012" to the United States Congress.
Some of the partners include:
- ALASKA WILDERNESS LEAGUE,
- AMERICAN BIRD CONSERVANCY,
- AMERICAN HIKING SOCIETY,
- AMERICAN RIVERS,
- ASSOCIATION OF FISH & WILDLIFE AGENCIES, and
- CHESAPEAKE BAY FOUNDATION.
The 257 page document includes financial support of the BLM (Bureau of Land Management), which represents Federal Government ownership of 253,000,000 acres of land. The United States includes 2,263,962,240 total acres of land, ergo the federal government owns 11% of it.
Conclusion
Donn your Earth Day T-shirt, go outside, and roll around in the grass. It doesn't cost anything and it celebrates the Earth. You'll itch, but you'll feel closer to the Earth.
