Volunteers preparing to head out to cleanup Greene County
Like the saying goes, April showers bring May flowers. Sometimes, though, the verdant beauty of Spring is marred by thoughtless people who casually toss trash out their car windows and onto the roadways.
Thankfully, there’s a group of others who take action to remove the blight and the debris that’s not only unsightly but also a menace to public health and a drain on municipal economies.
Beginning March 1 and continuing through May 31, these civic-minded individuals will be seen along the roadways dressed in orange vests, wearing gloves and picking up trash.
Assisting them, the nonprofit organization Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful, Inc., is giving everyone a chance to do their part to beautify Greene County through its 2019 Great American Cleanup of Pennsylvania program.
Not only do these roadside volunteers enhance the natural beauty of the county, but, according to program coordinator Michelle Dunn, they also make an impact of people’s health.
Courtesy of Michelle Dunn
Courtesy of Michelle Dunn
Volunteers are pictured during last year’s Great American Cleanup of Pennsylvania.
“Discarded tires and containers fill with water and become breeding grounds for mosquitoes who spread diseases like West Nile to humans and birds,” Dunn said. “Thrown away chemicals and toxins seep into the drinking and ground water supply and contribute to cancer-causing pollution. By picking up roadside trash, volunteers also save municipalities money by not having to pay employees to do the same job.”
As a special window to this event, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and Pennsylvania Waste Industries Association are sponsoring Let’s Pick It Up PA everyday from April 13 through May 6. During this time, trash collected at registered cleanup events like litter cleanups, beautification projects, special collections and educational events, can be taken to participating landfills free or for a reduced cost with prior approval.
Participants who register at www.gacofpa.org can get free trash bags, gloves and safety vests from PennDOT district offices while supplies last.
“The pick up doesn’t have to be a big organized event,” Dunn said. “As little as two people can get together to participate, but it can also become a large community event. Organizers can make it any size they want it to be.”
The 2018 cleanup for Greene County resulted in 182 events, 356 volunteers, 25,760 pounds of trash properly disposed of and 52 miles of roads and trails cleaned. Groups that participated include the Center for Coal Field Justice, Jefferson-Morgan Elementary school, Greene County Trash Getters and the Cleaner Uppers.
In 2017 in Greene County, 355 volunteers removed 20,460 pounds of trash from local roadways. The year before, 363 volunteers cleaned up 34,040 pounds of trash, and in 2015, 316 volunteers removed 34,660 pounds of trash from the county’s roadways.
“The more people that get involved, the more beautiful the area will become,” Dunn said of this year’s cleanup event. “It only takes a couple of hours of volunteer time, but the result is so rewarding. No one wants to live in a community with garbage everywhere.”
If the participants decide to pick up along a state road, PennDOT will pick up the bagged trash. If they clean up along a municipal road, they’ll have to coordinate pick up with the municipality, Dunn said. Those cleaning up around a strip mall should check with management to see if the trash can be placed in the mall’s dumpster. For disposal of tires along the roads, participants should coordinate efforts with PennDOT.
“We’re not seeing a lot of appliances along the roads recently, but are experiencing an increase in discarded electronics,” Dunn said.
Due to the on-going challenges with implementation of Act 108, the Covered Device Recycling Act, many communities are seeing fewer and fewer options for proper disposal of electronics. Under the current law, these materials cannot go to the landfill. As spring cleanup season quickly approaches, Dunn recommends the following: When organizing a cleanup, remember to plan for proper disposal of any electronics that are found. The Covered Device Recycling Act bans many covered devices from landfills. There is no exemption for electronics found during cleanups; these materials cannot be taken to the landfill.
For information about electronics recycling and local recycling options for these items, please visit Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful’s website at www.eWastePA.org. You can also call the county’s recycling coordinator: Mimi Ritenour at 724-852-5300 or email her at mritenour@co.greene.pa.us.
- 5,362 Events
- 108,638 Invaluable Volunteers
- 1,107,164 Pounds of Materials Recycled
- 6,632,920 Pounds of Trash Disposed
- 8,915 Miles of Roads, Shorelines and Trails Cleaned
- 10,979 Trees, Shrubs, and Flowers Planted
- 19,753 Tires Properly Disposed
If no recycling outlet is identified, community cleanup coordinators are encouraged to contact processors directly in their community and ask if they will take these materials. Some may be able to do so for free, others for a fee, some may not take them at all due to the condition of the material.
Some municipalities may be willing to absorb the cost of processing the materials – others may not. Some may be able to store them, others may not.
If there are no outlets, no processor or municipality willing or able to assist, there is little else volunteers can do other than leave the material where it is found. Please make a note of the location, and once the law is fixed, retrieve the material for proper disposal as soon as possible.
While some volunteers may wish to take the electronic materials home with them and store the materials themselves, this is a tremendous risk to their safety due to the condition of the material as it is likely that there will be broken glass and potential metal contaminates.
According to Dunn, the state legislature is working to tweak the act. In the meantime, she suggests that, if volunteers suspect a toxic or dangerous chemical or substance, they should phone the Department of Environmental Protection. Those with household hazardous waste should contact Ritenour.
Anyone participating in Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful’s Great American Cleanup of PA can earn cash for their nonprofit or charity by entering the Great American Cleanup Video Contest. To participate send Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful a 60-second video of your event showing how you Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful. For details, go to gacofpa.org.
With the passage of the 2018 Act 62, litterers have a new incentive for not throwing material out of their cars onto the roadways. It comes in the form of heavy penalties. Those convicted of a summary offense for the first offense can be be sentenced to pay a fine of no less than $50 nor more than $300 and be required to pick up litter or illegally dumped trash for no less than five nor more than 30 hours, to be completed within six months. They are also subject to imprisonment for up to 90 days.
Fines can also be doubled for those convicted of littering in a litter enforcement corridor. Fines can also be tripled if the convicted individual scatters rubbish that originates at a place of business.