The “Bluegrass is Going Green.”
At least, that is the title of a song written by Clark County’s solid waste coordinator Gary Epperson. The song is being used in a public service announcement to promote the Commonwealth Cleanup Week, which starts today.
“We need every citizen, business, school, government body and organization to join together as one team with a mission that together is our only chance to ever ‘Get and Keep our Beautiful Bluegrass State of Kentucky Clean and Green,’” Epperson said.
The PSA also features a voiceover from Kentucky first lady Jane Beshear. Heidi Douglas Greer and the Kentucky Mountain Trio perform the tune. The PSA can bee seen at waste.ky.gov/RLA/Pages/CCW.aspx.
The weeklong initiative kicks off the Great American Cleanup, which runs from March through May. It’s a push to get Kentuckians to “spring clean” and recycle. It also promotes personal responsibility.
This is the 15th year of the event, which features volunteers across the state filling trash bags and picking up old tires. Last year, more than 28,000 volunteers picked up 65,392 bags of trash and 6,053 tires along 5,546 miles of roadway. Those same volunteers cleared 12 illegal dumps.
In Clark County, Trapp Elementary and Pilot View Elementary students will take home trash bags to clean up litter around their homes. Epperson said the Beta Club at George Rogers Clark High School and some home school families are also going to take part.
“Everyone occupies space and you probably have litter in that space. If everyone would take a few minutes to pick up a little trash and do something good for the environment, we’d have amazing results,” Epperson said. “Commonwealth Cleanup Week is a time to take a few minutes and pick up trash and dispose of it properly to make the state look better. It’s not going to get cleaned up by itself. It’s up to all of us.”
Nonprofit groups that register with their county’s solid waste coordinator and complete a Commonwealth Cleanup Week cleanup are eligible to win one of six $100 cash prizes in a random drawing to be held in May. Visit the Department of Waste Management’s website at waste.ky.gov for scheduled events and a listing of county solid waste coordinators in Kentucky.
“I am impressed each year with the number of Kentuckians who participate in this annual event,” said Len Peters, Energy and Environment Cabinet secretary. “Thousands give their time to numerous cleanup projects, picking up littler and trash from our roadways, valleys and streams and recycling where possible.”
Contact Casey Castle at ccastle@winchestersun.com.
