New York City is celebrating all things environmental Wednesday, April 22 for Earth Day.
From car-free streets and free energy-efficient transportation to outdoor events across the city, people of all ages can find ways to get involved this year.
Here is what to know about Earth Day, including events and celebrations in New York City.
Earth Day history
According to NYC Parks, the first Earth Day celebrations were held across New York City on April 22, 1970, after Gaylord Nelson, a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin, teamed up with Denis Hayes, an environmentalist, to create nationwide events and protests to call for a greater awareness for the health of outdoor spaces and preserving ecology.
NYC Parks said thousands of people showed up from all five boroughs to participate in the first annual Earth Day. It was estimated that at least 100,000 people had gathered in Union Square Park in one of the largest demonstrations since the 1930s.
Fifth Avenue was closed to traffic from Union Square Park to Central Park, and 14th Street between 3rd and 7th Avenues was transformed into an “ecological carnival.”
Today, street closures to reduce car usage and demonstrations are still popular every year in the city to fill the many parks and plazas across the city and keep the city’s nature healthy.
NYC car-free Earth Day Street closures
Since 2016, the New York City Department of Transportation has encouraged biking or walking instead of using cars or other vehicles by shutting down certain streets in all five boroughs.
“Car-Free Earth Day has expanded to locations throughout the five boroughs – connecting Open Streets, plazas, and accessing over 1,000 miles of NYC’s Bike Network,” the website says.
The streets shuttered include:
Manhattan
Brooklyn
Queens
Staten Island
Street closures start at 9 a.m. Saturday and go until 5 p.m. the same day. Events go from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Free Citi Bikes
Citi Bike is offering unlimited free 30-min rides on the classic Citi bikes Saturday, April 25 to celebrate Earth Day. The offer is valid for 24 hours, and available for everyone.
Earth Day event
Brooklyn Bridge Park is also hosting a free celebration at Pier 1 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, April 25.
Visit city, state and national parks
New York State holds over 1,700 city parks and playgrounds, over 215 New York State parks and 27 of the nation’s 433 U.S. National Parks properties, making it easy to find somewhere to spend time outdoors.
The Empire State Trail, launched in 2017, links 750 miles of green hiking and walking trails from Battery Park in Lower Manhattan to the Canada/New York Border at Buffalo to the west and Rouses Point in upstate Clinton County.
Another iconic trail that passes through New York is the Appalachian Trail, which can be accessed at Harriman and Bear Mountain State Parks in Rockland County and Sterling Forest State Park in Orange County.
To find parks near you, visit the New York City or New York State Parks website.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: NYC celebrates Earth Day with car-free streets and events
Reporting by Alexandra Rivera and Madison Scott, New York Connect Team / Rockland/Westchester Journal News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
