WILBRAHAM — Earth Day is April 22 this year, but volunteers in Wilbraham will be getting an early start when the third annual Wilbraham Clean Up takes place April 12.
In addition to cleaning up trash in town, lead organizer Megan Harrigan said, “The goal of the event is to educate people out there to not litter in the first place … that this is not acceptable.”
Event organizers collaborate with the DPW, local police, Wilbraham Select Board, Fountain Park and the Conservation Commission to make the event happen.
Beginning at 8 a.m. on the morning of the clean up, volunteers will meet at Fountain Park. There, they will receive their supplies and cleanup assignments. Harrigan said people can request a specific area to focus on, but Harrigan said some corridors, including Stony Hill, Tinkham and Monson roads, are known to be hotspots for trash accumulation. The focus of the cleanup is on the tree belts, but people also pick up parks, playgrounds, wooded areas and near waterways.
Trash bags, grabbers, gloves and other supplies are also provided, but Harrigan noted people may want to bring gloves from home. Organizers spend “several hundred dollars” on supplies each year, Harrigan said.
Several community groups, such as local Scouting America troops, Wilbraham Soccer Club and the Wilbraham Children’s Museum, have participated in the past. There are also many families who bring their children to participate in the cleanup. Harrigan said she tries to assign groups with young children to neighborhoods or trail heads. “I never want to put a small child near a busy road,” she said. The cleanup organizers hire a police detail to help with traffic and pedestrian safety.
At 1 p.m., volunteers will return to the park with their trash bags, where a dumpster will be located. Any hazardous waste or bulky items found can be called into lead volunteer for the DPW to handle. Safety vests can be returned to the organizers and volunteers will receive an appreciation gift of a sapling and an ice cream cup.
The first year of the cleanup, volunteers picked up 4,600 pounds of trash. Due to poor weather last year, about half as many people came out to participate but they collected 8,020 pounds of refuse. Harrigan said the extra weight was due to several heavy items being pulled out of wooded areas.
Harrigan said that she hopes more people than ever will participate and learn to not pollute the town. She said, “Our ultimate goal is to not pick up any trash at all.”
To register for the cleanup, visit tinyurl.com/y6mdjyym.
