Litter campaign needs a pickup from volunteers
During my tenure on Columbus City Council, one consistent issue residents have called and emailed about, and discussed with me in person, is litter and debris on city streets, especially throughout our neighborhoods.
As chair of the Environment Committee, I and my team began to think about how to take a more holistic approach to address litter. While we were forced to shelter in place during the pandemic, we also saw an uptick in residential waste.
This had a direct impact on the additional litter and debris that I and many other Columbus residents were complaining about.
While working with Keep Columbus Beautiful, our goal was to increase the number of volunteer clean-ups city-wide and to increase community awareness through education and partnerships. But like most things in 2020, our plans were met with challenges. It forced us to think outside the box, which led us to the Cleaner Columbus Initiative.
The first step was to pilot the Cleaner Columbus Employment Program.
In November 2020, I asked my council colleagues and the mayor to support allocating $250,000 to hire unemployed and underemployed residents at $15 per hour to help clean up litter hotspots defined by the Division of Refuse in five targeted neighborhoods, especially along major thoroughfares.
The pilot program exceeded our expectations. During the three-week program, workers collected 53% of the total weight of litter collected in 2019 – or nearly 174,000 pounds.
In 2021, our initiative to create a Cleaner Columbus became a multi-pronged approach and includes:
Allocating $550,000 to nonprofit community partners to help coordinate the Cleaner Columbus Employment Program this spring and fall. Our nonprofit partners this spring – Franklinton Board of Trade, Community Development for All People, St. Stephen’s Community House, Us Together, and Columbus Next Generation – have hired residents as a type of “strike force” to help clean up problem areas. The first cohort is near completion.
A $2 million investment was announced last month by Mayor Andrew J. Ginther and the city council for a youth employment program for this summer. Their partner, the YMCA Earth Service Corps, will hire 400 young people ages 16-24 to pick up litter.
These jobs also help develop leadership and empowerment skills, teach about the communities being served, and highlight the importance of environmental stewardship. Those interested can apply for positions at ymcacolumbus.org/yesc.
The increasing use of Keep Columbus Beautiful’s K-12 litter curriculum focuses on both learning and service. The importance of developing and sustaining socially responsible attitudes and behaviors in our children cannot be overstated. Our partners at Columbus City Schools are committed to increasing these efforts through design challenges, adopting surrounding neighborhoods for clean-ups, and creating community service projects for high schoolers.
For our youngest learners, a visit by our new Cleaner Columbus mascot, Scarlet, is a fun way to begin to foster a generation of young environmental stewards.
Increasing volunteer clean-up events is an invaluable tool to achieve a Cleaner Columbus. Will you accept the challenge and organize a clean-up event with your co-workers or neighbors?
My office and Keep Columbus Beautiful can suggest a specific area for your clean-up. The program provides trash bags and the use of safety vests and trash grabbers. Whether it’s a group of 10 or 100, working together to pick up litter will make an immediate impact.
I can guarantee that you will feel a tremendous sense of pride and accomplishment. For more information, visit columbus.gov/cleanercolumbus or call 614-645-3559.
Council member Emmanuel V. Remy chairs Columbus City Council’s Environment Committee.