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The cleanup,
held annually by OCRRA for more than 18 years, will occur this year on April 20
and 21. Participants are encouraged to improve the community by collecting
litter in public spaces. The litter can be placed in trash bags labeled with
stickers—obtained from OCRRA--marking it as part of the cleanup. The stickers
allow the trash bags to be disposed of free of charge. Last year, participants
picked up 164,000 pounds of trash, a record haul.
Stewart said the majority of litter is fast-food containers, tobacco products, such as cigarette butts, and plastic bags. She suggested that if participants find recyclables to bring them home to recycle and cautions against participants trying to take care of more dangerous litter, such as sharp items. If you find these, leave them and call your municipality.
Stewart added
that, consistently, over the last few years, 8,000 participants picked up more
than 100,000 pounds of trash. Currently, 5,500 people have signed up to
participate this year. Many choose to register in groups, with the average
being 10 to 15 people; businesses, schools and community groups are all welcome.
Stewart is hoping for 10,000 participants, and expects to at least match last
year’s number of participants. Many people register in the last two weeks, she
said. “I’m sure we’ll hit that 8,000 mark, definitely.”
People can register using an online form or can call OCRRA to register. When you register, you can indicate where you want to clean, how many people will be in your group, and how many stickers you need. Stickers will be mailed out a week before the event with instructions of what to do with the trash after it is collected.
Stewart said the project has grown since its first year. “It’s definitely become more popular, and every year is different,” she noted. “People can get together, have fun, pick up trash, and improve the look of the community.”
For more information, call OCRRA at 453-2866 or visit ocrra.org.
