 CLICK HERE TO VIEW PHOTOS OF THE ROADSIDE PRIDE WINNERS
Tourists saw less litter this fall as they enjoyed colorful foliage in southern and eastern Kentucky, thanks to nearly 2,000 volunteers who picked up trash during the Roadside PRIDE anti-litter campaign.
PRIDE, the nonprofit organization that sponsored the two-week event, announced the results Dec. 12 at The Center for Rural Development in Somerset.
From Oct. 15 through Oct. 31, 1,966 Roadside PRIDE volunteers spent 8,635 hours picking up litter along 1,190 miles of roads in PRIDE’s 38-county service area. They filled 11,214 trash bags and gathered 291 junk appliances and 1,686 old tires.
The Roadside PRIDE program features a friendly competition among the region’s communities, and PRIDE presented trophies to the 16 winners on Dec. 12. Local governments earned points for recruiting volunteers, cleaning road miles and collecting trash during the two weeks. Counties and cities competed in population-based classes, with Class 1 being for the smallest populations and Class 4 for the largest.
The counties that won Roadside PRIDE awards were:- Class 1 - Owsley County, 1st Place, and Menifee County, 2nd Place
- Class 2 - Leslie County, 1st Place, and Rockcastle County, 2nd Place
- Class 3 - Perry County, 1st Place, and Johnson County, 2nd Place
- Class 4 - Pulaski County, 1st Place, and Pike County, 2nd Place
The award winning cities were: - Class 1 - Livingston, 1st Place, and Salt Lick, 2nd Place
- Class 2 - Benham, 1st Place, and Lynch, 2nd Place
- Class 3 - Mt. Vernon, 1st Place, and Cumberland, 2nd Place
- Class 4 - Columbia, 1st Place, and Paintsville, 2nd Place
“Clean roads say a lot about a community,” said Congressman Hal Rogers (KY-5), who founded PRIDE. “Personally, I feel better about where I live when I see scenic views unspoiled by fast-food bags and tires. It shows me that my neighbors care about our home and want to take care of it. Visitors have the same reaction, and they are more likely to return and spend money here.”
“We appreciate the officials and volunteers who showed commitment to a clean environment by joining in Roadside PRIDE,” said Karen Engle, PRIDE president and chief executive officer. “PRIDE will continue to support their efforts, especially through education, both in the schools and communities. As more people learn to care for our region’s natural beauty, there will be less litter.”
This was the fifth annual Roadside PRIDE program. PRIDE provided cleanup supplies to volunteers and reimbursed local governments for their trash disposal expenses.
PRIDE — which stands for Personal Responsibility In a Desirable Environment — was started in 1997 by Rogers and the late James Bickford, former Secretary of the Kentucky Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Cabinet. Their vision was to provide government resources to communities as they worked to clean up the region’s environment and promote environmental education. PRIDE is funded by grants from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
For more information, please call the PRIDE office, toll free, at 888-577-4339.
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