2008 Earth Week Published April 16, 2008 By 375th Civil Engineer Squadron SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. -- The week of April 21-25 has been declared Earth Week at Scott Air Force Base by the 375th Airlift Wing Commander Col Al Hunt. The week will have environmental and energy awareness activities, with heightened Earth and Arbor Day events April 24. Starting Monday, there will be an Earth Week display in the lobby of the Base Exchange where environmental and energy awareness information material will be displayed. Scott Elementary School actively participates each year in Earth Week activities with the base, and students' Earth Week Art Contest winning entries will be on display at the BX Wednesday. On Thursday, the school will host a Base Environmental Flight sponsored Earth Day Youth Fair at the Patriot's Landing Youth Center. Fun, informational Earth Day related activities are planned for the students and Ride Finders will be present April 24 to give out information on the benefits of car pooling. In the afternoon, a tree planting ceremony will be held in front of the Youth Center at 2:45 p.m. with fourth and fifth-grade students in attendance. The ceremony will be hosted by Col. Tamra Rank, 375th AW vice commander. The ceremony will again recognize Scott as Tree City USA, for the 14th consecutive year. All base personnel are invited to attend. In the event of inclement weather, the tree planting will be canceled. Earth week will conclude with a Base Clean-Up day Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. This will be another opportunity to polish up the showcase base. The occupants of each facility are tasked to clean the areas around their premises, to include trimming bushes and weeding, sweeping sidewalks, raking leaves, touching up paint, emptying trash bins, picking up litter and mulching where necessary. Limited supplies are available at the self-help store on a first-come, first-serve basis. All large debris items such as concrete blocks, tree limbs and yard waste should be placed at the nearest street corner by 1:00 pm to ensure pick-up. As a reminder, recyclable items and government equipment (including furniture and appliances) may not be placed in dumpsters or debris piles. Household hazardous waste cannot be accepted on-base; please dispose of off-base. No hazardous waste should be placed into the trash or dumpsters; please call for proper disposal 256-2184 or 530-6557. The following items are accepted at the new recycling collection area (in former trailer park area): cardboard, paper (white, colored, newspaper, envelopes, books), plastic (#1-#7), glass, aluminum cans, scrap metal and wooden pallets. Questions regarding recycling items may be addressed by called 256-6431. Properly packaged and sealed light bulbs can be taken to Building 3306 for disposal. Any other items should be disposed of through proper channels such as DRMO or Base Supply.