On Saturday afternoon the Altona community celebrated Earth Day.

The free event was put on by the Altona Community Action Network, and spokesperson Connie Heppner-Mueller said it's all about "building community and building awareness about how we can do better in terms of caring for our planet."

The afternoon consisted of 5 workshops and activities.

"This year it's a bit more of a festival feel," said Heppner-Mueller. She explained that last year's Earth Day was an indoor event with speakers.

The stations included composting, birding with resident birding expert Al Schritt, a bicycle tune-up workshop, seed sharing, and a bat house workshop.

"Bats are amazing for eating mosquitoes, hundreds and hundreds of them every night, and if you can attract one to your yard it really helps," said Heppner-Mueller.

People were also able to check out the community garden and sign up for a plot this year with coordinator Jack Heppner.

The action network also had their Boomerang Bags on display, which are created by the group and volunteers in an effort to reduce reliance on plastic bags.