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Politics & Government

Great Oconee Cleanup: Part 1

We've got a dirty little secret in Oconee County.

Do you ever look out the window of your car when you are at a stop sign or red light and find yourself disgusted at the litter you see?

Do you notice as you drive along Oconee's beautiful pastoral roads how much trash is lying where asphalt meets grass?

When walking or running, aren't you disgusted to see bottles and cans that could be recycled,  just lying in your path.

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As if just seeing it wasn't bad enough, consider this.   It costs YOU money.  Tax dollars, and lots of them.

 spends a lot of money each year on roadside litter clean up.  Littering is such a big problem that our roads department can't keep up.  In fact, a follow up article about this portion of the subject is required because it's a lot of information.  Stay tuned.

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Not only does it cost taxpayer money to clean up roadside litter, but it makes us look bad.  And that's just sad because we all know Oconee County is one of the most beautiful places in the world to live.

Who does this dirty deed?  Certainly it is the few, and not the many.

Ignoring it won't make it go away.  You and your family or business can be proactive.  It's easy, and becoming involved in community projects like this is really what community is all about, right?

The Keep Oconee County Beautiful Commission (KOCBC) needs your help to make this year’s Great American Cleanup™ in Oconee County the best ever!  We are launching an all-out campaign to recruit volunteers for this effort.
Oconee County will be a part of the Perspectives on Progress Tour ( I couldn't find a link about this)on May 3 & 4, 2012.  This tour will host Site Location Consultants, Industrial Developers and Corporate Real Estate Professionals who have the potential to bring more big projects, like the Caterpillar project, to Oconee County.  THAT MEANS JOBS, MY FRIENDS!  An economic boost to our local economy!

In order to show off our beautiful county in the best light possible, Melvin Davis, Chair of the Oconee County Board of Commissioners has encouraged KOCBC to pump up our cleanup efforts this year ~ just in time for Earth Day and Keep America Beautiful’s Great American Cleanup™.

The Great American Cleanup™ organizes millions of volunteers in local activities directed at litter prevention, litter removal, recycling, beautification and community greening.  These activities encourage individual stewardship of our environment and care for our community.

We are asking business managers, church groups, civic organizations and individual citizens to encourage your staff members to volunteer for our Great American Cleanup activities during the month of April.  Here is how you can participate:

  • Select a nearby site for your business to clean up by April 30th.  We recommend picking up litter in a one mile radius on the roads around your location.  KOCBC will provide trash bags, safety vests and litter grabbers.  
  • Join us for the “Clean-Up Oconee” Kick-off and Cleanup Day on Saturday, April 21st – we will gather at the Oconee County Library at 9 am to jump start our activities! 
  • Commit to a beautification project such as planting trees, creating a pollinator habitat, butterfly garden or a community vegetable garden on or near your business property.
  • Please return the attached CLEAN-UP OCONEE registration form by mail, email, or fax (706-769-0705), no later than Friday, April 6, 2012.  This form helps us make sure we spread our volunteers to proper locations so that we cover as much territory as possible, so it's important to register!
  • "Like" us on our Facebook page so that you can see where all the teams will be picking up for the event.

For more information, please follow KOCBC on Facebook or check out the Keep Oconee County Beautiful page on the county website.

Thank you for joining us in our efforts to keep Oconee County beautiful!

Keep Oconee County Beautiful Commission:  Nancy Abrol, Monica Ali, Michelle Creech, Angela Helwig, Kate McDaniel, Marge McKee, Mary Ann McQuinn, Mary Mellein, Ken Morneault, Esther Porter and many auxiliary members!

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