Arbor Day 2010, celebrating Seattle's 25 years as a Tree City USA.
Plant trees, pull weeds, and clean up the shores of Lake Union in celebration of Arbor Day AND Earth Day. Volunteers will beautify a section of the Cheshiahud Loop on the eastern shore of Lake Union from Fairview Avenue N to Terry Pettus Park (E Newton Street).
Arbor Day, a celebration of trees, was first observed in 1872, in Nebraska. It is now celebrated annually and promoted by the Arbor Day Foundation, which also bestows the “Tree City USA” award to communities that fulfill program requirements. One of the requirements is that Arbor Day is celebrated each year, and a member of the local government reads an Arbor Day proclamation. This year, Arbor Day will be combined with Earth Day, which was first celebrated in 1970. City Arborist, Nolan Rundquist, of the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT), states that, “Trees anchor our neighborhoods, helping to establish a sense of place that carries from generation to generation. It’s important that we not only protect our existing trees, but that we plant trees to celebrate Arbor Day, so we can be assured that Seattle will remain a vibrant, livable community.”
SDOT and the Seattle Parks Foundation are contributing trees and plants and, additionally, the King Conservation District will donate over 200 plants and shrubs to be planted on the lakefront trail. Other sponsors of the event include the Eastlake Community Council, Seattle Parks and Recreation, Gay City Health Project, Seattle Works, Starbucks, Equal Rights Washington, Zero Waste Seattle, and the Boeing Company.
For more details and to participate as a volunteer, please sign up at: http://www.earthgay.org.