Get clean and green for Earth Day

It’s time for spring cleaning—and not just in your attic. With Earth Day almost upon us, April is the perfect month to scrub, tidy and freshen up your local environment.

On a global level, Earth Day organizers this year have made “a billion acts of green” a theme of the observation. The object is to register a billion pledges toward a more sustainable planet in anticipation of the United Nations’ 2012 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro.

But locally, Southern California also has many ways to pitch in, from beach cleanups to e-waste recycling.

Here are just a few ways you can help make your backyard sparkle this spring:

–Get in on Heal the Bay’s “Nothin’ But Sand” beach cleanup day April 16 in Torrance and the Pacific Palisades. Volunteers will get a free reusable water bottle, while supplies last, and—this weekend—a free pass to the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium. (Don’t forget to sign their waiver form.)

–Got an old mattress or porch sofa in need of disposal? The Los Angeles County Department of Public Works suggests that you get rid of it responsibly—during one of the county’s many bulky item clean-up days.

–And don’t forget to do the same with your old electronic equipment. Cal State Northridge is sponsoring a big e-waste recycling event on April 22 as part of its Earth Day observation, and DPW has an ongoing collection schedule that will take e-waste off your hands.

–Join the Friends of the Los Angeles River for The Great L.A. River Cleanup, happening at more than a dozen sites along L.A.’s favorite waterway on April 30 from 9 a.m. until noon.

–Looking for something a little livelier? Earth Day celebrations abound this month. Pasadena has one this weekend. So does South L.A. So does CSUN, which, among other things, invites you to come pick oranges on Sunday morning for a local community food program. Topanga’s will open with yoga and close with a drum circle April 22-24.

–Or go really big and check out the Go Green Expo at the Los Angeles Convention Center this weekend. They’ll have kids’ activities, booths, eco-celebrities such as Ed Begley Jr., Mariel Hemingway and Captain Paul Watson of Animal Planet’s “Whale Wars”.

Posted 4/13/11