Litter task force contest draws 505 entries
♦ The Rome-floyd group also unveils an Adopt-a-mile program.
Members of the Litter and Blight Task Force didn’t initially think they would be getting many submissions for their environmental art poster contest.
Instead, they got 505 entries from K-12 students all across Floyd County.
After going over the artwork, Emma Wells from Keep Rome-floyd Beautiful quickly realized that their initial idea of trying to display all of the posters wouldn’t work.
Instead, the Rome-floyd ECO Center at Ridge Ferry Park will be hosting a free art exhibition of the top 40 submissions on Jan. 23 at 6 p.m.
The public will be able to come out and view the selected posters hung up around the center. The ECO Center will also be providing refreshments.
The first-place poster will be printed for a communitywide awareness campaign, but task force members also talked about the possibility of putting the artwork on recycle bins, magnets and stickers.
The winners of the contest will be announced at the exhibition and the artwork will be on display for two weeks.
Task force members also announced that, for both students and non-students, the Adopt-a-mile program is ready for anyone to come and sign up.
Local businesses or groups will be able to “adopt” any mile in Floyd County and around Rome and keep it clean for a year.
“We have a list of suggested areas people can sign up for or they can pick their own area,” Wells said.
The program suggests groups do about three or four clean-ups a year, depending on how dirty it gets over time. Wells commented that the group would need to “keep an eye on it” to gauge how often the area needs to be cleaned.
Hardy Realty has already signed up for the program. Rome First United Methodist Boy Scout Troop 113 and Cornerstone Sunday School class — led by County Commissioner and task force member Allison Watters — plan to join in as well.
The program costs a one-time fee of $250, which covers the cost of the sign displaying the group’s name. Supplies such as grabbers, vests and gloves also will be provided by Keep Rome-floyd Beautiful.
To sign up for Adopt-a-mile, go on keepromefloydbeautiful.org/adopta-mile or contact Wells at ewells@ romega.us or 706-236-4456.