Lowell National Historical Park and partners are calling for volunteers and visitors for the annual spring clean-ups and Earth Day environmental events. Check out the various ways you can “give back to the community” this spring:
Celebrate Earth Day with educational fun on Saturday, April 19, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Keep Lowell Beautiful-Community Gardens Greenhouse overlooking the Northern Canal just off Aiken St. next to the Lowell NHP Maintenance Facility. Please email the greenhouse group at info@communitygardensgreenhouse.org for more information about the event and volunteering, or call Janice Pokorski at 978-957-8863.
Join the Merrimack River Watershed Council and the Environmental Protection Agency for their Earth Day Celebration, April 23, 11:45 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. at Greater Lawrence Community Boating (1 Eaton Street, Lawrence, MA). Learn about the results of 2007’s water quality monitoring and 2008’s monitoring plan. Contact Christine Tabak at 978-275-0120 ext. 15 for more information.
Join the first big clean-up of Spring: the Earth Day Canals, Riverwalk, and Downtown Clean-up on Saturday, April 26. Registration and kick-off at Middlesex Community College, 8 to 9 a.m.; clean-up teams in action from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m.
Visit the Youth Environmental Expo at Wannalancit Mill on Saturday, April 26, 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. Event will bein 1st Floor Mill Conference Room, 600 Suffolk Street, featuring eco-friendly fashion show, organic agriculture, art, health lifestyle tips, and more. For information contact Julie Villareal at 978-934-4772.
Join the Watershed Council for the kick-off of the Merrimack River Shoreline Survey, May 3, 8 a.m. to 12 noon. This survey will examine the riverbanks by boat searching for trash piles and other threats to our water quality. No boat or experience is necessary, but attendance at a training session on April 28 is required. Contact Tracie Sales at 978-275-0120 ext. 13 for more information.
Roll up your sleeves for the city-wide Great American Clean-up on Saturday, May 3, 9 a.m. to 12 noon. Jump in with Keep Lowell Beautiful, the City of Lowell, and your neighborhood group, or join with Lowell Canalwaters Cleaners for more work on the canals or Riverwalk. Contact Mike Demaras at the City’s Division of Neighborhood Services at 978-446-7243 for more information.
Learn about local environmental education efforts with a lot of fun at the Earth Fest on Saturday, May 3, 12 to 3 p.m., by the Rogers School on South Common, sponsored by the Greater Lowell Environmental Education Alliance. For more information, call Beverly Perna of the Tsongas Industrial History Center at 978-970-5100.
For any and all of these volunteer activities, you may get more information and sign up by calling the park volunteer office at 978-275-1740, or email: Lowell_NHP_Volunteers@nps.gov. For Keep Lowell Beautiful and Lowell Canalwaters Cleaners information, you may directly call Bill Moreau at 978-835-5147.
