Venice : Drive to Aid Rain Forest

Venice High School students who have collected aluminum beverage cans since the beginning of the year will convert the cans to dollars in observance of Earth Day. They plan to use the money to purchase endangered forest acreage in Costa Rica.

The school is in competition with rival Westchester High School to see which can collect the most cans. Venice is aiming for about 20,000 cans, enough to buy between six and 10 acres of tropical rain forest, said Don Feinstein, co-chairman of the Venice Recycling Committee, a community group working with the students.

Feinstein said the rain forest land costs $120 an acre. After it is purchased, it will be donated to the Costa Rican National Park System to help ensure the maintenance of some of the world’s rapidly diminishing rain forest stock, Feinstein said.

In conjunction with Earth Day, Venice High School will hold an environmental fair at noon today, where there will be printed material and speakers to discuss environmental concerns. On Saturday, students will head for Venice Beach at the foot of Venice Boulevard to participate in a beach cleanup from 1 to 2:30 p.m.