Published: March 01, 2009 10:34 pm      

Volunteers lining up to help collect litter, debris

Goal to collect waste from every Lawrence County road

LOUISA — Hundreds of volunteers are expected to join forces in Lawrence County on April 4 to collect litter and debris from roadsides, creeks and river banks, according to Assistant County Judge Executive Eddie Michael.

“We have over 500 volunteers right now. Of course it is hard to say how many of those will show up,” Michael said last week, noting last year’s cleanup effort involved about 100 representing four or five civic organizations. “They will pick up garbage mostly from along the roadsides and bag it up on Saturday (April 4) and county workers will collect it all on the next Monday.”

He said the county’s optimistic goal is to have volunteers collect waste from every road in Lawrence County on that day, although he admits it will be a difficult challenge to meet. With 20 civic and school organizations committed to the effort, however, Michael said he is possitive volunteers can accomplish the task.

The Lawrence County Fiscal Court qualifies to receive $17,800 in PRIDE Spring Cleanup Funds, he said, with the City of Blaine eligible for $850, and the City of Louisa qualified for up to $1,200. The county will use those proceeds to provide two weeks of free drop-off services at the city and county garages to collect household waste as well as construction materials.

“Our goal is to use that money to empty 75 to 80 of the big, green dumpsters,” Michael said.

The county will also be planting 30 4- to 8-foot redbud trees, he said, as well as trees and shrubbery along strategic areas.

The assistant county judge executive said volunteers will be recognized for accomplishments, including most miles covered and amount of trash collected, during a cookout hosted by the Lawrence County Tourism Committee.

For more information or to volunteer, call Julia Rollins at (606) 673-9495.

PRIDE is a nonprofit organization founded by Congressman Hal Rogers and Kentucky Environmental Protection Secretary James Bickford in 1997 to promote “personal responsibility in a desirable environment” in southern and eastern Kentucky.

TIM PRESTON can be reached at tpreston@dailyindependent.com or at (606) 326-2651.