It's probably not the most circled date on the calendar, but Earth Day is easily the most important for the environment.

People worldwide celebrated the 45th annual Earth Day today and Susan Gallagher, chief naturalist at the Carbon County Environmental Education Center, said it's a time to step back and think about the simple things done every day."Think about the products you buy at the grocery store, the car you drive or the clothes you are wearing," she said. "Everything has an environmental impact. Pick one thing, examine the environmental impact it has and see if you need to make a change. Start small."If you make only one change and don't already recycle, Gallagher said, that should be it."It's the easiest thing to do," she said.Flipping on a light switch is something just about everyone does countless times each day.Franklin Klock, CCEDC naturalist, said Earth Day could be a reminder for everyone to take a minute and think about how the electricity for that light is generated."We're not anti-coal, but I don't know that everyone takes a minute to think about the fact that it generates most of the electricity in Pennsylvania or the environmental impacts it has." Gallagher said.Stan Meinburg, of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, also offered several environmentally friendly tips.Cutting back on food waste not only saves money, but also helps the atmosphere. The average family throws away $1,600 per year on wasted food. When that rotting food hits the landfill, it releases methane. The green house gas is 20 times more dangerous than carbon dioxide.Washing clothes in cold water is also beneficial to a family's pocketbook, especially since 90 percent of a washing machine's energy use is spent warming water.Small water leaks may seem insignificant at the time, but Meinburg said the average family loses over 10,000 gallons of water each year.One of the best ways to positively impact the environment is to reduce dependency on gasoline-powered automobiles.Just two days per week of walking, biking, or taking public transportation to work can prevent 2 tons of carbon pollution every year.Roughly 1.5 million hybrid cars and SUVs were sold in the U.S. from 2004 to 2009.Several events mark Earth Day locally.Jim Thorpe held its 16th annual Earth Day celebration on Saturday.CCEDC and the Lehighton Fire Department are hosting the 2015 5K Earth Day hippie run and walk on Saturday at 7:30 a.m. at the Lehighton Trail Head, 200 Main Lane, Sargent Stanley Hoffman Boulevard.The Pocono Environmental Education Center is hosting an Earth Day festival on Saturday with hands-on learning stations, interpretive hikes, conservation exhibits, animals, crafts, food and music. No registration needed. Cost is $5 per car.