FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, April 9, 2020
Contact: Heather Ellzey
Environmental Educator
Recycling and Trash Collections
479.601.1930
hellzey@fayetteville-ar.gov
Contact: Kristina Jones
Volunteer and Community Programs Coordinator
Parks and Recreation
479.444.3467
kjones@fayetteville-ar.gov
Fayetteville Celebrates Earth Day with Litter-Grabber Giveaway and Pledge
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — April 22, 2020 marks the fiftieth anniversary of Earth Day, and Fayetteville is celebrating by giving out litter-grabbers and t-shirts and inviting citizens to sign an online Earth Day Pledge to participate in clean-up of the City’s parks and trails. The City of Fayetteville and Experience Fayetteville initially teamed up with municipalities along the Razorback Regional Greenway Corridor to plan a region-wide cleanup of the 40-mile trail. However, this Earth Day event, along with the post-cleanup celebration, Party in the Park, has been postponed due to COVID-19 and will be rescheduled for a later date.
Spring weather, interrupted daily routines, and limited opportunity for social connection are leading people to spend more time outdoors. This also means increased litter in our parks and along City trails, and an opportunity for the community to help out while practicing safe social distancing (SSD). In lieu of the Greenway cleanup, the Fayetteville Recycling and Trash Division, Parks and Recreation, and Sustainability Departments will be hosting a SSD drive-through litter grabber and t-shirt giveaway on Monday, April 20. They will be giving away 50 litter grabbers and 350 Earth Day t-shirts through a first-come, first-served online sign-up.
Online registration begins on Thursday, April 9, and is open until filled. In order to participate, Fayetteville residents will register online, signing an Earth Day Pledge. The first 50 to sign up will receive one litter grabber and two Earth Day t-shirts for their household; the next 125 to sign up will receive two t-shirts per household. All participants are asked to do something on Earth Day that creates a positive impact while practicing SSD in their neighborhood, roadside, trail or local park, and post to social media about it using the hashtags #recyclesomething and #keepfayettevillebeautiful. Any litter collected in parks and on trails may be placed in or next to facility trash cans; if you complete a litter cleanup elsewhere and need assistance with trash pickup, please call Heather Ellzey at 479-601-1930.
T-shirt and litter grabber pickup will be on April 20 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Fayetteville Parks and Recreation parking lot, located at 1455 S. Happy Hollow Road. The rain date will be April 21 at the same time. Participants will be assigned a pickup time during online registration, based on their last name, and simply need to drive up to City staff who will be handing out supplies while wearing face masks and gloves.
To participate in the event, please go to the event page:
www.fayetteville-ar.gov/earthday . Here you will find the pledge and registration form, along with further instructions.
Other Ways to Make A Difference: While we are practicing SSD, there are many other simple ways we can celebrate Earth Day to make a positive difference in our home and community:
- Prevent accidental litter. Close dumpster lids when not in use; don’t throw unbagged trash in truck beds; bag all trash placed in curbside pickup cans.
- Follow this link for daily activities you can do to celebrate Earth Day https://www.earthday.org/earth-day-challenge/ and participate in citizen science projects through the Earth Challenge 2020 app. https://earthchallenge2020.earthday.org/
- Go to the Great Razorback Regional Greenway Cleanup Facebook Page for other simple things you and your household can do: https://www.facebook.com/pg/greatgreenwaycleanup/events/
For further questions about the giveaway please contact Heather Ellzey hellzey@fayetteville-ar.gov or Kristina Jones kjones@fayetteville-ar.gov .