Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful has announced that registration is open for the 2017 Great American Cleanup of PA, which runs from March 1 to May 31.   If you or a group would like to organize a cleanup, register now and get some free help.

Registered cleanup events can get free trash bags, gloves, and safety vests from PennDOT district offices, as supplies last.

Events can be litter cleanups, illegal dump cleanups, beautification projects, special collections, and educational events.

As part of this statewide cleanup event, the Department of Environmental Protection and Pennsylvania Waste Industries Association are sponsoring Let’s Pick It Up PA – Everyday from April 18 through May 8.

During this time, trash collected at registered events can be taken to participating landfills for free or reduced cost disposal with prior approval.

“We are so grateful to our volunteers and sponsors who help make the Great American Cleanup of PA, Pennsylvania’s premier community improvement initiative, possible,” said Shannon Reiter, President of Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful. “This year we hope to engage even more Pennsylvania’s to come out between March and May to make their communities clean and beautiful.”

All 67 counties in Pennsylvania were represented in the 2016 Great American Cleanup of PA. In total, there were 6,118 events with 158,821 volunteers. Volunteers collected 5 million pounds of trash.

They cleaned over 11,000 miles of roads, railroad tracks, trails, waterways, and shorelines. Volunteers also planted 15,465 trees, bulbs, and plants in an effort to keep Pennsylvania beautiful.

A copy of the 2016 Great American Cleanup of PA final report is available online: www.gacofpa.org/great-american-cleanup-of-pa-photos-and-results/ 

This annual event is held in conjunction with Keep America Beautiful’s Great American Cleanup and led by a coalition of nonprofit, state agency and business partners such as the Department of Environmental Protection, PennDOT, Pennsylvania Waste Industries Association, the Pennsylvania Food Merchants Association, Weis Markets, Inc., Wawa, Inc., Sheetz, ShopRite and The Fresh Grocer.

Additional 2017 event supporters include Steel Recycling Institute, Lancaster County Solid Waste Management Authority, Clean Earth, Giant Food Stores, Inc., Republic Services and Wegmans Food Markets.

Help make your community clean and beautiful and register an event at the Great American Cleanup of PA website. Questions should be directed to Michelle Dunn, Great American Cleanup of PA Program Coordinator, at 1-877-772-3673 ext. 113 or send email to: mdunn@keeppabeautiful.org.

About Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful 
Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful’s mission is empowering Pennsylvanians to make our communities clean and beautiful.  Since 1990, Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful and its volunteers have removed over 121 million pounds of litter from Pennsylvania’s roadways, greenways, parks, forests, and waterways. To learn more about Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful, visit www.keeppabeautiful.org.
 
About Keep America Beautiful, Inc.  
Keep America Beautiful, Inc., established in 1953, is the nation’s largest volunteer-based community action and education organization. With a network of more than 1,200 affiliate and participating organizations, Keep America Beautiful forms public-private partnerships and programs that engage individuals to take greater responsibility for improving their community environments. To learn more about Keep America Beautiful, visit  www.kab.org.