Press Release (March 2, 2023)
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Andrea Mummert, Earth Day Cleanup Coordinator
Email:
MARK YOUR CALENDARS FOR APRIL 22 SOLANO COUNTY EARTH DAY CLEANUP EVENTS
Solano County, CA (March 2, 2023) - Solano County’s annual Earth Day Cleanup Events are scheduled to coincide with the international observance of Earth Day on April 22nd. Eleven cleanup sites are planned across the County, with locations ranging from Blue Rock Springs Park in Vallejo to Suisun City’s waterfront to Lake Solano County Park in the coast range hills. Each year, Solano County Earth Day Cleanup volunteers typically remove between 5,000 - 10,000 pounds of trash and recyclables from community parks, trails, roadsides, and waterways. Anyone who would like to contribute to positive change on Earth Day and help make Solano “clean and green” is invited to join one of the Cleanup sites. Our site organizers welcome individuals—like local residents and students—or organized groups—like clubs and businesses. Interested volunteers should visit cleanupsolano.org for details about site locations, contacts, and times.
Trash and recyclables that are not properly disposed of can enter waterways or storm drains that flow into creeks and rivers before draining into the sea. Solano County residents can help by volunteering at community cleanups, reducing the amount of waste they create, and disposing of their waste properly. Narcisa Untal, Senior Planner for Integrated Waste Management with Solano County’s Department of Resource Management, notes, “It’s important that we continue to examine what waste we are generating every day and to make sure that we are disposing of it properly. That includes making sure CRV (California Redemption Value) beverage containers are always making it into the recycling stream and not in the trash or our local waterways.” A free digital Recycling Guide is available at recycle.solanocounty.com for tips on properly recycling things like oil, appliances, furniture, and electronic waste as well as CRV beverage containers. Resources to learn more about plastic pollution and ways to take action are available at earthday.org/campaign/end-plastic-pollution/.
Earth Day Cleanup volunteers are strongly encouraged to bring their own buckets and gloves to help make the events zero waste. Additionally, the number of items collected can be tracked on the Ocean Conservancy’s CleanSwell mobile app as a way to help researchers keep tabs on the amount and types of trash being diverted from our oceans. According to the Ocean Conservancy, data recorded on CleanSwell is uploaded to a global database used by researchers and policy makers to inform trash management solutions, such as California’s 2022 Senate Bill 54 to reduce the production of single use plastics.
The 2023 Solano County Earth Day Cleanup is sponsored by Solano County Department of Resource Management with additional support provided by the Sierra Club Solano Group, Sprouts Farmers Market in Vacaville, the Solano Center for Volunteer and Non-Profit Leadership, 95.3 KUIC, Grizzly Waters Kayaking, and the California Coastal Commission. Cleanup partners include Solano County Parks, Fairfield-Suisun Sewer District, Vallejo Watershed Alliance, Vallejo Flood and Wastewater District, City of Benicia, City of Dixon, City of Vacaville, Solano Land Trust, and volunteer site leaders. The Solano RCD coordinates three annual community cleanups on behalf of Solano County, including Earth Day, World Environment Day on June 3, and Coastal Cleanup Day on September 23. Learn more about these cleanups at cleanupsolano.org.
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