Kern County has a lot of ways to give back in time for Earth Day, which is today. On Saturday, events will be held that offer residents a way to clean up or make decisions to help the environment.
Here’s a look at what’s on tap.
Work/play day at Okihi
White Wolf Wellness will host a community work/play day at Okihi Campgrounds on Saturday.
The event was originally scheduled for Earth Day but moved because of the forecast of rain.
Any time from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., volunteers can head out to Okihi, 13227 Round Mountain Road, to pitch in for the cleanup.
Along with providing sweat equity, organizers suggest volunteers bring weed whackers, work gloves, sanders, rake or pruning tools for a variety of tasks.
All the cleanup efforts will pay off for the location, which will host the latest Skye on the River music night on April 29.
Recycle/restring event for musicians
Local musicians can do their part on Saturday with a free recycle and restring event at Bakersfield Sound Co.
Sponsored by D’Addario and international recycling company TerraCycle, musicians can bring any old instrument strings for recycling and get their electric or acoustic guitars restrung with D’Addario NYXL or Nickel Bronze Acoustic strings.
“We’re thrilled to have found a recycling solution for our instrument string waste thanks to the partnership between D’Addario and TerraCycle,” Bakersfield Sound Co. store representative Drew Martin said in a news release. “We can now make sure that our collected instrument strings are properly disposed of regardless of the brand, allowing us to do what we love while minimizing our footprint on the environment.”
Old strings collected during the event will be recycled through Playback, D’Addario’s free, national recycling program. Operated through D’Addario’s Players Circle loyalty program, Playback allows registered users to recycle their used strings in exchange for extra Players Circle points. Musicians attending the recycle and restring events will receive a code at the event, redeemable for extra Players Circle points.
Points can be used towards merchandise or donated to the D’Addario Foundation, the company’s nonprofit supporting music education in underserved communities.
The collected metal strings from the event will be converted into recycled alloys, which are commonly utilized in the construction of guitar necks, and the recycled nylon will be used in automotive applications.
The event will be held from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Bakersfield Sound Co., 10715 Rosedale Highway. For more information on the event, call the store at 661-487-0806.
Tire Amnesty Day
On Saturday, Kern County Public Works, in partnership with Caltrans’ District 9, will host a Clean California Tire Amnesty Day allowing residents to drop off tires at four designated Kern disposal sites.
From 8 a.m. until 4 p.m. (or when capacity is reached), tires can be left free of charge at Ridgecrest Landfill, 3301 W. Bowman Road, Ridgecrest; Boron Landfill, 11400 Boron Ave., Boron; Mojave-Rosamond Landfill, 400 Silver Queen Road, Mojave; or the Tehachapi Landfill, 12001 E.Tehachapi Blvd., Tehachapi.
Here are a few guidelines to follow when transporting your tires to your nearest disposal site:
Tires must have rims removed and no earthmover/oversized tires will be accepted. No commercial waste is allowed.
Note that, per state Law, drivers can only transport nine tires per trip. To prevent litter, loads must be tarped for transport.
Community cleanup events
Also on Saturday, Keep Kern Beautiful will host and participate in community cleanup events throughout the county. The effort is timed to coincide with Earth Day and the Keep America Beautiful 24th annual Great American Cleanup, which will take place April 30 around the city.
Anyone interested in joining the cleanup effort can sign up at one of the following locations:
Bakersfield: 8 a.m. to noon, meetup in the vacant lot across from 2206 Center St. Contact Christopher McGehee at chrismrotary@gmail.com for more information.
Boron: 8 a.m. to noon, with the meetup at Love’s Travel Stop at 27201 Boron Frontage Road North, in Boron. Contact Lynn Black at 760-762-6373 for volunteer information.
Lake Isabella: 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., meetup at Boulder Gulch Campground at Highway 155 in Wofford Heights. Contact Gary Ananian at gary@kernriverconservancy.org for more information.
Oildale: 8 a.m. to noon, meetup at Standard Park at 301 E. Minner Ave. A catered lunch will be served to volunteers at noon at the park. Contact David Kadel at 661-343-4574 or dkadel@bak.rr.com for details.
Shafter: Starting at 8 a.m., volunteers are encouraged to to start picking up trash in their neighborhood en route to a meetup for volunteers at 10:30 a.m. at Tin Cup Coffee, 1101 E. Lerdo Highway in Shafter. Contact Lynnda Martin at lynnda@americanrefuse.co for more information.
Another cleanup will be held in Tehachapi with the volunteer group #loveTehachapi, which will clean up at multiple locations on Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon. Volunteers can meet at the Tehachapi Home Depot, 507 N. Mill St., at 9:45 a.m.
Trash bags, gloves, picker tools and safety vests will be provided.
