Happy Earth Day 2024: The News Could Be Better
Today is Earth Day, also known as World Earth Day and as International Mother Earth Day. This day each year is devoted to fostering worldwide awareness of the threats to our environment and to promote the sustainability of planet Earth. Earth Day.org has hosted World Earth Day on April 22nd since 1970. It has been estimated that around 1 billion people around the world engage in activities that bring awareness to the climate crisis and are meant to encourage changes in the way things are done as they relate to our environment.
Planet vs. Plastics:
Each year has a theme, and the 2024 theme is Planet vs. Plastics, the objective of which is to bring into focus the issue of just how harmful the effects of widespread plastic use in the world has become. From its creation to the end of its use, plastics contribute significantly to greenhouse gases as those gasses are omitted at every step of the plastic lifecycle. Fossil fuels are used for extraction and transportation, refining, manufacturing, managing waste and at the end of its use the Harm caused to our oceans, landscape, and our air have been studied extensively for years and are showing increasingly concerning results. Plastics are showing up in human blood and in mothers breastmilk. Plastics are showing up more and more in human tissue and studies have shown that we are even inhaling pieces of plastic which are in the atmosphere.
According to Monica P. Medina, former U.S. State Department Assistant Secretary for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs all of the pieces of plastic ever created are still in the environment in some way as they never degrade.
ScienceNews.org has reported that micro plastics have been found from the deepest place on earth, the Mariana Trench all the way to the summit of Mount Everest. Defined as pieces of plastic less than 5 mm across, they find their way into our lungs, and the harmful effects of which are just now being studied.
One of Westport’s most beloved features are our beaches and the enjoyment of Long Island Sound, so the affects of plastics in our oceans and how to mitigate the damage they cause should be of concern.
Sustainable Westport Is Fighting Back!
According to their website, The mission of Sustainable Westport is to inspire, support, and connect residents, organizations, and the Town of Westport in furtherance of the town’s resolution to become a Net Zero community by the year 2050. Westport has long been a pioneer in sustainability – whether it was being the first town east of the Mississippi to ban single-use plastic bags, declaring “We Are Still In” when the U.S. announced it would be withdrawing from the Paris Climate Agreement, or having the first fully-electric police car on the East coast. In 2017, the RTM, adopted a resolution for Westport to use its best efforts to become a Net Zero community by 2050, where we have reduced our impacts across energy, water, and waste, so that they are sustainably managed, using approaches that are economically viable, of social benefit, and environmentally responsible. This goal – one of the first in the state – is a reflection of our community’s dedication to creating and nurturing a truly sustainable town.
We can all help and Sustainable Westport has provided a resource guide on their website which provides many ways we can help combat the destruction to our environment.
Visit Sustainable Westport to learn how to help.
For additional resources and information visit: EarthDay.org, and also ScienceNews.org
Story by J.C. Martin
Partial Solar Eclipse Watch Parties Everywhere
Watch parties and gatherings were held all over our area. Glasses to safely view the special event were sold out at most locations but were available, as they were happily being shared by those who had them and by places like libraries. Levitt Pavilion had a large crowd and people around town could be seen gazing skyward around the time of maximum coverage of the Sun by the Moon.
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com (except eclipse, contributed photo) Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
Watch parties and gatherings were held all over our area. One such watch party was held in nearby Redding, hosted by The New Pond Farm Education Center, a bucolic institution with it’s own observatory where stargazing events are held monthly in the summer season, the photos from which are included here. The black marks o the sun were sunspots as seen through the New Pond Farm telescope. (eclipse photo contributed) Above, excited visitors to New Pond Farm Education Center line up for a close-up glimpse of yesterday’s eclipse as others watch through protective glasses.
Excitement was building all week in Fairfield County for yesterday’s solar eclipse. The much heralded event was an anular, not total eclipse. An anular solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes directly between the Earth and Sun, but does not completely cover the Sun's disk. Instead, it covers most of the Sun, leaving its outer edge visible as a bright ring or “annulus” around the darkened Moon according to the National Environmental Satellite, Data and Information Service, part of NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The event was attended by nearly one hundred visitors who are pictured here. Clouds threatened to obscure visibility prior to the event, but they fortunately they cleared. Scientist for decades have recognized that cumulus clouds can disappear rapidly when the solar eclipse begins. According to he website Nature.com, “Our corrected data reveal that, over cooling land surfaces, shallow cumulus clouds start to disappear at very small solar obscurations (~15%).
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
Fashionistas Line The Runway For Fashionably Westport
One of Westport’s hottest fashion events was held last week at the Westport Library, where our town’s finest clothing retailers, hair salon’s and stylists combined with a couple dozen of Westport’s beautiful models and celebrities to show the latest, greatest and hottest fashions for spring and summer. This was the fourth iteration of this very popular event which provides part of the proceeds to Homes With Hope, the Westport based an agency dedicated to ending homelessness in Fairfield County.
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
Helen McAlinden, President & CEO of Homes with Hope (top left, bottom right) gave a slide and video presentation detailing the work of the agency in helping those in need. Westport’s Dave Briggs (above right), did a wonderful job as this year’s Emcee, keeping the energy up and the runway flowing.
Prior to the fashion show and during the intermission guests gathered and enjoyed a great selection of hors d’oeuvres and cocktails. Many were lined up for a Photo-Op with media before the Step & Repeat.
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
Helen McAlinden, President & CEO of Homes with Hope told WestportLocal:
“This event is a very special event to Homes With Hope because it opens up new exposure to our mission. A lot of new people buy homes in Westport and would like to give back to their wonderful new community. I’d like to express my gratitude to our longtime and new supporters for attending and encourage them to reach out to me if they would like to learn more about our work. I can be reached at 475-225-5292. I give out my cell phone all the time and take people on personal tours because I believe that people want to engage more when they see firsthand the work that we do at Homes With Hope. We have wonderful and dedicated staff and an absolute brilliant mission helping the most vulnerable in Fairfield County with housing and food insecurity.”
McAlinden continued, “Please thank all involved from me. Especially the great staff at DMA that provide a great night for all. As a result of this event we receive a portion of the proceeds which supports the agency’s operating budget to ensure that everyone that comes to our doors receive the support they need. We are about to celebrate our 40 year anniversary. I encourage people to reach out and if interested arrange to come see our 40 year documentary covering our history over the years.”
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
Contact Homes With Hope to attend their 40th year celebration on April 9th which will be held at Christ & Holy Trinity’s Branson Hall at 4:30 PM.
To donate and help Homes With Hope achieve their mission’s success click here: Homes With Hope.org
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
Happy Easter Westport!
Today is Easter Sunday when Christians celebrate the Resurrection. What about Passover? Often they coincide closely, not this year. Why? Since the turn of the century, Easter has overlapped with Passover every year but three: In 2005, 2008 and 2016.
In 2024, Passover will begin on April 22 and end on April 30. This also happens to be a Jewish leap year. Leap years are built into the lunar calendar because the lunar year is about 11 days shorter than the solar year, so an extra month is added to certain years to make up the difference.
While Easter is fixed to the full moon, spring and Sunday, the Jewish calendar is fixed to Passover.
"The entire Jewish calendar is meant to keep Passover in the springtime," said Rabbi Jeremy Ruberg of the New City Jewish Center. "The Torah said Passover happens in aviv (spring in Hebrew), therefore we need to make sure Passover is in the spring."
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge.