County clean-up effort planned for next week

A group of Franklin County citizens concerned about the litter problem in the area have banded together to reorganize the Franklin County chapter of People Against a Littered State (PALS).

To jumpstart their efforts, the group is sponsoring “Don’t Drop It on Franklin County,” which will be a spring cleanup taking place April 25-30.

The Russellville city council passed a resolution Monday endorsing the effort.

Event organizer Kathy Archer said the week-long event would be a great way for citizens to do their part in making their community a cleaner, nicer place to live.

“Probate Judge Barry Moore recently got a group of concerned citizens together to see if we could participate in the state-wide clean-up week,” Archer said. “The schools were going to be out during the statewide week, so we’re planning the cleanup for the 25th through the 30th so the students can take part in this as well.”

Archer said all schools in the city and county school systems have been asked to participate in the spring cleanup and to sign up for the “Clean Campus Program” sponsored by PALS.

The “Clean Campus Program” will actually take place throughout the 2011-2012 school year and schools who participate will qualify for nomination to receive first, second and third place awards in the state at the Governor’s Awards program in November.

“The students in the county’s gifted programs have already been taking part in a litter project, so we’re glad to have them helping with this cleanup,” Archer said.

Students have put signs in various places around the county declaring it a “Litter Free Zone,” which is something Archer hopes other students and adults will pay attention to.

“We want everybody to get out and be a part of this, whether a group or organization wants to participate all together or whether someone wants to participate individually,” Archer said. “Either way, we just need participation.”

Archer said each day of the week will have a certain agenda with Monday being the kick-off.

“There will be a kick-off ceremony at 9 a.m. on Monday at the Franklin County Courthouse for all mayors, law enforcement and elected officials,” Archer said. “Tuesday will be designated for picking a park or stream to clean up, Wednesday for cleaning the schools, Thursday for cleaning each downtown area in the county, and Friday and Saturday the focus will be on neighborhoods.”

Archer said Franklin County PALS has already received some community support for the event from several Russellville civic organizations such as Rotary, Civitan, Kiwanis and the Lion’s Club.

“Also, Doug Green at Dependable Hardware will have bags available for people to pick up and put all the litter in,” Archer said.

Archer added that this week is also a time for residents to remember the importance of recycling and said SSWA Recycling has five drop-off locations in Franklin County: the Solid Waste Department on Carroll Avenue in Russellville, Sav-A-Lot on U.S. 43 in Russellville, Belgreen High School, Phil Campbell High School and Red Bay High School.

“If everyone will just do their part to pick up the litter, prevent litter from happening and recycle, we would have a more beautiful county to live in,” Archer said.

While cleaning up the county is something everyone is encouraged to take part in, there are several precautions citizens should take before heading out with their trash bags.

• Wear appropriate clothing: long pants, long sleeves, and brightly colored clothing to protect against tall weeds and bushes and to maximize visibility to motorists. Hard-soled shoes protect against sharp objects.

• Wear gloves and be cautions when handling sharp objects such as broken glass and metal cans.

• With the on-going issue of methamphetamine use, be on the watch for burned spoons, syringes or needles, soft drink bottles (especially Mountain Dew or Mellow Yellow bottles), or any other chemical bottle that looks to be hazardous. If you have a question about something that looks dangerous, ask a supervisor or other authorities about how to properly dispose of it.

Anyone who is interested in participating in “Don’t Drop It on Franklin County” as an individual or as a group can contact Kathy Archer at 256-331-3486.