Members of Maplewood Township’s Environmental Advisory Committee don’t think earth day should just last one day. It’s not enough to just have one day where people are conscious of the environment, committee member Sheila Baker Gujral said.

“Every day should be earth day,” Baker Gujral said.

Toward that goal, this year, they’ve stretched out earth day to earth week—and the week has spilled over past the seven-day mark. Activities actually began last night, with the garden club’s Joanne Breckenridge’s talk on native wildlife. Continuing through the weekend and next week, the township is hosting a number of environmental activities and talks.

As in years past, the centerpiece of the environmental minded activities is the Rahway river cleanup. Volunteers, equipped with gloves and bags, scour the river for trash and refuse. The water, which has reportedly in prior cleanups needed to be stripped of regular trash, as well as larger pieces like couches, can be surprisingly child friendly.

Or maybe it’s not such a surprise, considering it’s an adult sanctioned time to muck about in muck.

“Younger kids love going down there,” Baker Gujral said. She added that seeing the river water clear up enough to show that fish swimming in it is gratifying.

Also of note are events like the April 21 workshop on composting—an event Baker Gujral noted she was looking forward to, as it is a topic she’s long been curious about. On Sunday, and going through the rest of the week, Maplewood residents are encouraged to turn off unused appliances with the “Light’s on, but nobody’s home” program.

The composting talk and the lights out pledge are meant to be educational; getting information out is one of the main goals for the committee. In government operations, the township is notably energy efficient. Baker Gujral noted that 90 percent of the town’s emissions are from private use. She believes that Maplewood residents are receptive to environmentally friendly ideas, and that with a little nudging, people can change “a little bit here and there,” and make a sizable impact.

“A lot of people forget to turn off lights. We want to promote awareness and good habits,” Baker Gujral said.

For a full program of events, click here.