Jasperites are being asked to make small changes to their daily routines this Earth Day (April 22) – changes that could land them a free cup of coffee.

“We’re having a small public awareness event this year,” said Janet Cooper, the town’s new environmental stewardship co-ordinator. “The acts are small, but collectively, they have an impact.”

To celebrate Earth Day this year, the municipality will buy coffee for everyone who brings a reusable mug to selective coffee shops in town. Reusable mug use is in decline in Jasper, according to Cooper, something the town wants to halt.

“Owners of the shops said five years ago, more people were using reusable mugs. If an idea falls out of the public eye, people slip back into old habits,” she said.

The goal is to change long term behaviour, not just introduce trends, Cooper noted.

Plastic bags are another issue she said needs attention. Some municipalities across the country have banned their usage, and Jasper did look into the initiative years ago.

“It was an issue for a while, and people felt obligated to bring reusable bags. The challenge is to keep the pressure on,” Cooper said.

Changing social behaviour is difficult, but there has been success in the past, she said. For example, seatbelts have become the norm (and the law), and smoking in bars has become socially taboo.

The town will see a benefit from reduced plastic and paper cup consumption. While small, increased diversion of waste from the landfill helps prolong the life cycle of the Hinton landfill and decreases the town’s tipping charges. The diversion program will ramp up this summer with the installation of several new organic compost and recycling bins.

“We’ll have bins everywhere, so it will be as easy as taking out your garbage,” Cooper said. “That’s where we can make the biggest dent, because food waste is so dense.”

Students at Jasper Elementary School will take part in various activities to recognize Earth Day, including a trip to the Jasper-Yellowhead Museum & Archives to view the Immortal Nature’s Ageless Harmony exhibit of prints made from glass slide photographs. Other classes will be doing their own activities as they fit in their curriculum, while the entire school will watch the environmental movie The Great Polar Bear Movie.

Students at École Desrochers will make a human river, with students wearing blue or dressing like water, as a human river acknowledges how important water and rivers are and how essential it is to life. They will also be planting sunflower seeds for their upcoming garden, as well as attending the Turtle Talks art show at Beloved.