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The Team Redstone Earth Day/Arbor Day celebration on April 25 will feature tree giveaways, food trucks and a variety of exhibitors and the next day, you can pitch in to clean up the installation.
Earth Day was last celebrated at Redstone in 2019 with a field trip for selected elementary school classrooms to attend presentations of environmental exhibitors, Tom Richardson, the chief of cultural and natural resources in the Garrison’s Environment Management Division, said.
“Of course, the COVID pandemic put a halt to that activity for several years,” he said. “The Garrison Command Group, Directorate of Public Works, the Environmental Management Division and our partners at NASA have redeveloped a new Earth Day program which invites all of the Redstone community to learn about the diverse natural resources as well as cultural and archeological resources on the installation.
“We will concurrently be recognizing Arbor Day and our designation as a Tree City USA.”
The April 25 event will be from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Outdoor Learning Center next to the MWR facility at 5141 Sportsman Lane, with a tree planting at 9:45 a.m. Exhibitors at the Outdoor Learning Center will be the Redstone Arsenal archeologist, Solid Waste Disposal Authority, Tennessee Valley Authority, Madison County Beekeepers Association, Alabama Department of Cultural & Natural Resources and the Rise Raptor Project.
Those attending can take advantage of the Outdoor Learning Center and its walking trails, boardwalk and overlook point at the tupelo swamp with benches and tables.
“The public is fully aware of the Army mission of defending our nation and our Constitution from enemies, foreign and domestic. The cultural and natural resources of the United States are a part of what makes our nation whole and strong,” Richardson said. “Natural resources of forests, wetlands, wildlife, plant life and shared ecosystems must be defended to ensure our future on this land.
“Earth Day is a way of recognizing and celebrating the Army’s commitment to defending, protecting and sustaining these resources.”
Concurrently, exhibitors including an electric vehicle car show and NASA Earth Sciences Group, will be set up at NASA’s Food Truck Corral at the intersection of Martin Road and Rideout Road.
Tree saplings will be given away at both locations – the Outdoor Learning Center and the Food Truck Corral, according to Richardson.
“We will have approximately 500 tree saplings to give away,” he said. “There will be 10 different species types of native hardwood trees.” They are American hornbeam, yellow poplar, bald cypress, Eastern hemlock, pawpaw, sweetbay magnolia, pin oak, overcup oak, sourwood and dogwood, he said.
As part of the Green Up & Clean Up project, the Garrison and NASA will provide trash bags and gloves at the Outdoor Leaning Center and Food Truck Corral, and those can be picked up at either location on April 25 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Also, Arepas and Touchdown BBQ food trucks will be at the Outdoor Learning Center.
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