OU students and community members will have to gather on South Green, instead of the originally planned College Green, to participate in this Saturday's Earth Day Festival.

In honor of Earth Day, bands, speakers, and information tables will become a part of campus life from 12 to 7 p.m. Chad Kister, who helped organize the event, said the move accomplished nothing except an unnecessary headache.

"They originally gave us permission on March 3 to hold the Earth Day Festival on College Green," he said. "Because we didn't specify that we were having bands, they are reneging on their promise."

Kister said this move violated the group's First Amendment rights.

"We did a lot of publicity work, and at the last minute they denied us access," he said. "It's very wrong what OU did."

Carole Cox, assistant director of student activities for greek life and student organizations, said the move was made because of the amplitude needed for the bands.

"When the site was originally reserved, they hadn't told us what they were going to do," she said. "When they were securing the amp system, we found out it was more detailed. The request was denied, but they were given other options for the event," she said.

The College Green has an amp limit so that surrounding areas aren't disturbed, she said.

"To use the college green, the amp limit is 10 watts, and the listed bands were going to use 10,000 watts," she said. To use the college greens, the bands would be limited to acoustic guitars.

This event has been in the works for about two months, but the first stages of planning took place in the fall, Kister said. Many groups were involved with the festival, including the Environment Awareness Committee of Student Senate and OU Campus Greens.

The festival will have six different speakers, all focusing on various issues, said OU junior Chris Crews, who helped organize the event. The topics discussed will range from Dysart Woods to the Green Party, with each speaker alternating times with the six bands scheduled to perform.

Along with the bands and speakers, there will be eco-theater skits put on by the School of Theater and tents set up to display artwork of local school children, said Fern Weener, an OU junior and student senator for the environmental awareness committee.

Kister said this event is an important part of Earth Week.

"It is very important for people to realize the connection we have with the earth," he said. "Each of us impacts the environment, and we need to make it positive. Humanity is at war with the earth, and it is causing tragic destruction worldwide."

Crews also said the event will have a positive impact.

"It's good to bring awareness to Athens. It's not only about environmental awareness. We're trying to tap into different aspects that tie into environmental concerns, you can't just pick one," he said. "Earth Day seemed to be a good focus to build around."

Earth Day usually is a big event around campus, but it hasn't been too big the last couple of years, Crews said.

"Not much has happened for Earth Day the last few years, but we're trying to make the festival an official, bigger and better event that happens every year," he said.