cleanup

February 6 2023

Spotlight on Buckingham County

Beckey Watson Uncategorized Bags of litter, Boxley Corp., Buckingham County, Buckingham County Anti-Litter Task Force, cleanup, Hampden Sidney, litter, Mark Warner, St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary, tires

We want to take a few minutes to shine the spotlight on some amazing volunteers. It’s wonderful to meet people who are concerned enough about litter to do the work needed to remove litter from the roads and landscape. Some people have come up with different ways to motivate others, and here’s one story we want to share with you.

The Buckingham County Anti-Litter Task Force truly is a force to be reckoned with! They host semi-annual cleanups that have a purpose and a prize – cash prizes actually! They challenged groups and individuals to sign up to compete for the highest number of bags of trash collected between October 22nd and November 12th. The reward was $300 for first place, $200 for second place, and $100 for third place.

Volunteers with a conscience for the environment and a hatred for litter, walked along the roads and landscape in their communities to pick up litter. Lots of litter.

There were 11 teams who registered to compete for the prize money totaling 112 people. A Buckingham record 275 bags of trash were collected along with over 30 automobile tires. The tires and bags of litter were picked up by VDOT, for which the Anti-Litter Task Force was grateful.

The awards ceremony was held December 3rd at a Christmas Bazaar at the Historic Village at Lee Wayside. They celebrated that they have picked up 960 bags of litter since 2020. “This was the most successful anti-litter cleanup campaign yet since the effort was brought back in 2020,” said Task Force Committee Chairman and District Four Supervisor Jordan Miles. He also expressed appreciation for the hardworking volunteers, which included Keep Virginia’s own Roger Eitelman, Programs Coordinator.

The first-place prize went to St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary, with 115 bags of litter and numerous tires. The group had about 50 brothers who participated in the cleanup.

Winners of the second-place prize went to Dominion Energy, who were first-time participants in this event. They cleaned up 55 bags of litter and 30 automobile tires.

Third place went to the Buckingham County Democratic Committee with 12 participants who collected 32 bags of trash.

Some of the other teams and individuals who participated were: Hampden Sydney College had 19 students who collected 13 bags. Team 602 collected 22 bags, plus a mattress, headboard, box spring, and a baby walker. Boxley Corp. employees collected 11 bags. Buckingham Branch Railroad staff collected 8 bags. Cindy Cook, who has been a participant since the first year, also picked up 8 bags. Shawn Miller, a two-time winner in the past, collected 5 bags. And Liz Jones collected 2 bags of trash in addition to leading the operation of the cleanup!

Senator Mark Warner’s Outreach Representative, Alexis Bowles-Fryar, came to the awards ceremony and presented a letter from the senator congratulating the Task Force and all the participants on a job well done.

Cameron Gilliam, Supervisor of District Two, said, “The strong spirit of these volunteers is inspiring. Their efforts have resulted in a more attractive community.”

June 16 2022

Pennington Gap Awarded a $500 Green Grant

Beckey Watson Uncategorized award, cleanup, Green Grants, litter, litter pickers, Litter Prevention, Pennington Gap, Scouts

The Town of Pennington Gap is awarded $500 to help with litter cleanup as one of Keep Virginia Beautiful’s thirty Green Grant Awards in June.

The Town of Pennington Gap, located in the southwest corner of our Commonwealth, boasts the slogan, “Welcome to Pennington Gap, where smiling faces and outdoor recreation are a way of life.” Living in a community that is free from litter in the landscape and waterways is one way the town can keep that slogan a reality.

Every year the town hosts an annual event called “Scouts Clean the River” where Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts, as well as community volunteers, come together to help clean up the river along the walking trail. The Town provides protective gear and litter pickers for all the volunteers and Scouts. They give t-shirts and a goodie bag with sunscreen, hand sanitizer, and other products to all participants. At the end the day, the cleanup is celebrated with a pizza party. Past years have gleaned several tons of garbage from the river and banks.

Funds from the Green Grants award will be used to purchase safety vests, litter pickers, work gloves, and other cleanup supplies for the event.

This is a wonderful opportunity for young residents to interact with their community and be a part of the solution for the next generation. Congratulations!

April 4 2022

Great Virginia Greenup

Beckey Watson Uncategorized Augusta, Chesapeake, cleanup, Danville, Diamond, eastern shore, Norfolk, RVA Cleansweep, Suffolk

The 28^th annual Great American Cleanup is underway! If you’re ready to roll up your sleeves and get to work in your community, Keep America Beautiful is offering a free litter grabber and cleanup kit!

Here in Virginia, we’re celebrating our Great Virginia Greenup, with events all across the Commonwealth. Thanks to the Pepsi team that helped us cleanup at Lafayette Park in Norfolk, and to all those who came out to the Diamond in Richmond to help Nutsy get ready for the baseball season! There are many other cities, towns, and groups cleaning up and greening up this spring. Check out the Events Calendar on our website to get involved! Here are just a few:

The City of Roanoke says organizing a neighborhood cleanup is a wonderful opportunity to get to know your neighbors and beautify your neighborhood at the same time! They offer suggestions here from the Office of Neighborhood Services for planning and implementing a neighborhood cleanup.

RVA Clean Sweep is a citizen group focused on making our city a better looking place through citizen-run trash cleanups throughout the area. They promote their own cleanups as well as cleanups from small and large organizations on their meetup page. They work with citizens, businesses, local and regional non-profits, city and state government to beautify the city they love!

May is Make Danville Shine month, and they are hoping you will show your love for Danville in a whole new way! The goal of Make Danville Shine is to encourage every resident to focus on maintenance, upkeep and beautification of their property, and to assist neighbors who may not be able to do so due to age or disability. This cleanup campaign is a big step in the City’s blight eradication efforts.

The City of Fairfax holds an annual Spring Cleanup Day in April, in which residents, business owners and workers, city staff, friends, and family members come together to make the City of Fairfax a cleaner and greener place. In 2022, Spring Cleanup Day will be April 23. Clean Fairfax Community Cleanup Program offers supplies and other resources that support county-wide cleanups by individuals, groups, schools, churches, and businesses.

Waste Watchers of the Eastern Shore of Virginia encourages the adoption of highways by individuals, businesses, churches, civic organizations and other groups. The meet on the second Wednesday of every month from 5:30-7:30PM at The Sage Diner in Onley, VA.

The City of Suffolk will be removing litter and debris from waterways with their Nansemond River Cleanup and their annual Clean the Bay Day, which is a massive litter removal that benefits the waterways and communities.

Each year the Augusta Regional Landfill holds a Spring Cleanup for one week in April. During that week, fees are waived and special accommodations are made for waste. This year, on Saturday April 9 – Saturday, April 16, 2022, they will offer disposal of household tires, appliances, and automotive waste. Check their webpage for details.

Chesapeake Recycles Day Event will be held from 9 am-noon on Saturday, April 23, 2022 at Chesapeake Square Mall. Goodwill, SPSA, Shred-It and TFC Recycling will collect a wide variety of items. In general, accepted items will include electronics, clothing, household items, household hazardous waste, and sensitive documents.

Keep Norfolk Beautiful offers supplies and resources for you to conduct a cleanup on your own. You can choose the place that needs to be picked up, choose a date and time that works for you, and get your family or group engaged!

The Great Virginia Greenup runs through June 21^st, so get out there and get busy greening up your community!

January 17 2022

MLK Day of Service

Beckey Watson Uncategorized cleanup, Day of Service, HandsOn, Jr., Martin Luther King, MLK, Volunteer

Observed each year on the third Monday in January, MLK Day is the only federal holiday designated as a national day of service to encourage all Americans to volunteer to improve their communities. It’s also a day to learn more about Martin Luther King, Jr., and explore other thought-provoking artists and conversations. People all across the Commonwealth will join in to clean up, build, and improve public spaces for all to enjoy. Here’s a few examples with links you can check out and sign up!

In Hampton, residents will be celebrating the annual MLK Day of Service. This will give people a chance to bridge the gap within their community — bringing them closer together, as Dr. King encouraged. One event will be held on Jan. 17^th at Buckroe Baptist Church at 1819 N. Mallory Street. It is being hosted by the “Made to Flourish” group that gathers local churches, resource partners and community volunteers. Registration is required.

Virginia Tech will be hosting a Jazz Brunch, as well as a series of virtual events featuring guests such as Fania E. Davis, a leading national voice on restorative justice, and renowned musician and activist Angélique Kidjo. For more information, click here.

Virginia State University says Volunteers are needed to ensure campus is beautiful for the start of the semester. Volunteers will be picking up trash along the ravine. Work gloves and trash grabbers will be provided.

There are several volunteer opportunities available on the Volunteer Alexandria website. There will even be Zoom events touted as a multi-day, multi-track, multi-session event.

Pathways’ YouthBuild students is an opportunity for youth aged 17-24. They will lead volunteers in community gardening projects, cleanups, and beautification efforts in a low-income community. Project Tasks include building and installing new raised beds for a community garden, and removing trash from around vacant homes.

And if you’re not comfortable joining a group to volunteer, you can “Do It Yourself” at home by creating Personal Care Kits for the homeless through this HandsOn Greater Richmond opportunity. Volunteers purchase supplies and complete the kits in their own space, then drop off completed projects at designated days and times.

You can join all those who will volunteer their time in honor of MLK Day. As he so beautifully said, “Everybody can be great, because anybody can serve.” -Martin Luther King, Jr.

June 29 2021

$1,000 Grant Awarded to Naturally, Newport News

Beckey Watson 30 in 30 Green Grants, Uncategorized cleanup, Cleanup Kit, Green Grants, litter, Litter Prevention, Newport News

Congratulations to today’s award of our 2021 Green Grants — Naturally, Newport News, who will receive a grant award of $1000 for its Litter Prevention project.

Naturally, Newport News is the Keep America Beautiful affiliate for the City of Newport News. They work to strengthen litter awareness and prevention initiatives. Naturally, Newport News recently began a “City Department Challenge,” which encourages city departments to start their own litter cleanup events, using cleanup kits provided by Naturally, Newport News.

Green Grants funds will be used to purchase cleanup kit supplies, including safety vests, litter grabbers, and gloves, to be loaned out for the City Department Challenge.

Every year, government, non-profit, civic and service organizations in Virginia were invited to apply for grants for $500 to $1,000 describing how they plan to tackle an environmental concern in their community regarding Litter Prevention, Recycling, Cigarette Litter Prevention, or Community Beautification. Since 2011, Keep Virginia Beautiful has provided $254,500 for 320 different environmental programs and projects all across the Commonwealth, due to the generosity of their partnership with Altria, as well as additional support from Coca-Cola, WestRock and Keep America Beautiful.

June 27 2021

Green Grant Award Goes to Communities In Schools of Hampton Roads

Beckey Watson 30 in 30 Green Grants, Uncategorized cigarette butts, Cigarette Litter, cleanup, Green Grants, Portsmouth, streets

Congratulations to today’s award of our 2021 Green Grants — Communities In Schools of Hampton Roads, in Portsmouth, will receive a grant award of $500 for its Cigarette Litter Prevention project!

Communities In Schools of Hampton Roads is a non-profit organization dedicated to empowering students to stay in school and achieve in life. They work with communities to provide students with assistance from matters relating to food and healthcare, as well as academic assistance and mentorship programs.

Communities In Schools of Hampton Roads recently launched the “Keep Our Streets Clean” initiative, which is designed to reduce the amount of cigarette litter in the community. The project will focus on making cigarette trash receptacles more accessible, and educating community members on the importance of properly disposing of cigarettes. Communities in Schools of Hampton Roads will use their grant funds to purchase fire-safe outdoor ashtrays and additional trash cans.

We’re grateful to have partners like these that are tackling the #1 most littered item, cigarette butts!

June 25 2021

$1,000 Grant Awarded to Clean Valley Council

Beckey Watson 30 in 30 Green Grants, Uncategorized cleanup, Green Grants, litter, Litter Prevention, Roanoke

We continue to announce the awards for our annual 30 in 30 Green Grants each day during June. Today, we’re pleased to award Clean Valley Council, in Roanoke, a grant of $1000 for its Litter Prevention project.

Clean Valley Council is an environmental conservation organization that provides educational programming on issues including litter prevention, recycling, storm water protection and stewardship in Southwest Virginia.

Clean Valley Council will use their grant funds to purchase litter grabbers, reusable gloves, and other supplies for litter cleanup events. They host two scheduled cleanups a year, in the spring and fall. They also offer Anytime Cleanups for community members. They have several Anytime Cleanup Satellite Stations to make litter prevention easy and accessible for all.

June 19 2021

$1,000 Grant for Friends of Bellemeade Park

Beckey Watson 30 in 30 Green Grants, Uncategorized cleanup, Green Grants, litter, Litter Prevention, reduce, Richmond, School, waterway

Congratulations to today’s award of our 2021 Green Grants: Friends of Bellemeade Park, in Richmond, will receive a grant award of $1000 for its Litter Prevention project! We’ll be announcing one Green Grants award each day during the month of June.

Friends of Bellemeade Park was formed to develop a piece of land adjoining Bellemeade Elementary School into a viable outdoor space for the children of the school and surrounding community. The six-acre park had been overgrown, a dumping ground for household furnishings and tires, and was bisected by a creek full of trash and assorted debris. Friends of Bellemeade Park cleaned up the area and now plans to establish a learning campus with programming to provide hands-on environmental education for the children and community.

Friends of Bellemeade Park will use their grant funds to install a stream buffer to manage erosion and litter in the creek, as well as wheelbarrows, litter grabbers, and other supplies and tools for volunteers to use during cleanups.

June 5 2021

Scott County is Ready to Cleanup!

Beckey Watson 30 in 30 Green Grants, Uncategorized 30 IN 30, cleanup, Cleanup supplies, Green Grants, Litter Prevention

Congratulations to Scott County Litter Control, who is today’s award of our 2021 Green Grants! They will receive $500 for its LItter Prevention project. We’ll be announcing one each day during the month of June.

The Scott County Litter Control office fields concerns and complaints regarding litter and illegal dumping throughout the large rural county. The Litter Control Officer also organizes and conducts volunteer cleanup projects, as well as provides informational presentations to the public, including school group presentations and staffed tables at community events.

Grant funds will be used to purchase litter grabbers and cleanup supplies to use at various community cleanup operations throughout Scott County. Many of the volunteers that come out to cleanup events include families of all ages, so providing tools will make their job easier and their efforts safer.

The mission at Keep Virginia Beautiful is to engage and unite Virginians to improve the natural and scenic environment. Since 2011, Keep Virginia Beautiful has provided $254,500 for 320 different environmental programs and projects all across the Commonwealth, due to the generosity of their partnership with Altria, as well as additional support from Coca-Cola, WestRock and Keep America Beautiful.

May 24 2021

Roadway Litter Down 54% Since 2009

Beckey Watson Uncategorized Beautification, cigarette butts, Cigarette Litter, cleanup, environment, Keep America Beautiful, litter, Litter Study, Results

Keep Virginia Beautiful is part of a network of 700 state and community-based affiliates of Keep America Beautiful®, who recently announced the summary of its 2020 study on litter in America.

The Keep America Beautiful 2020 National Litter Study provides a detailed understanding of the quantity, composition, and sources of litter across the United States. The organization’s 2020 study is a follow up to its landmark 2009 study, which builds on a history of science-based litter research started by Keep America Beautiful in 1969.

Key findings include:

Nearly 50 billion pieces of litter along U.S. roadways and waterways
Slightly more litter along waterways (25.9B) than roadways (23.7B)
152 items for each U.S. resident
More than 2,000 pieces of litter per mile (both roadway and waterway)
90% of people surveyed believe litter is a problem in their state
6 billion pieces more than 4 inches in size
Most littered item remains cigarette butts, although this litter is down almost 70%
207.1M PPE items littered

Keep America Beautiful retained Burns & McDonnell, a leading environmental engineering firm, to conduct its 2020 Study, which has four components: Public Attitudes Survey, Visible Litter Survey, Behavioral Observations Survey, and Financial Cost of Litter Survey (ongoing).

Dr. Helen Lowman, Keep America Beautiful President and CEO said, “I am thrilled to continue the history of Keep America Beautiful as the leader in litter research in the United States, and methodology that has now been used around the world. This data will help inform our programs for years to come addressing both litter on the ground and the act of littering.”

Sponsors of the Keep America Beautiful 2020 National Litter Study include dozens of individuals, corporations, industry groups, and foundations highlighting our belief in the strength of bringing everyone to the table. The largest supporters include Altria, American Beverage Association, American Chemistry Council, Dow, Food Packaging Institute, Garver Hilyard Black Foundation, National Association of Convenience Stores, Plastics Industry Association, and Santa Fe Natural Tobacco.

The full summary of the Keep America Beautiful® report is available here.

The good news is that litter IS solvable! The 54% reduction in roadside litter since 2009 is phenomenal, and the 2009 study shows a 61% reduction since 1969. We can work together to conquer the litter problem! Visit our website for ways you can be involved, and take the pledge to put litter and recyclables in their place, reduce-reuse-refuse-recycle, and teach others to do the same!