Green Up Day challenge: ‘Clean Every Mile’

April 27, 2022  |  By Times Argus & Waterbury Roundabout staff

For this year’s Green Up Day May 7, coordinators are challenging Vermonters to clean up every last mile of roadway. Or at least those roadways that are safe and legal to walk on.

“The Clean Every Mile challenge is what we’re working on this year and we’re hoping that it rallies even more volunteers than in the past,” said Kate Alberghini, executive director of Green Up Vermont. “Most towns do get out and clean all of their roads. This is just town roads, it doesn’t include the interstate of course or major routes because of safety concerns.”

In 2021, approximately 22,000 people volunteered to pick up litter along roadsides, cleaning about 75% of the state’s 13,000 miles of town-owned roads, according to Green Up Vermont. 

Alberghini hopes this year’s challenge to clean them all will drum up even more volunteers, bring communities together, and reduce the amount of litter overall. “It gives people, our volunteer town coordinators specifically, the opportunity to rally a few more volunteers with this challenge,” she said.

Green Up Day got started 52 years ago and has become a spring tradition for many people. Green Up Vermont is a nonprofit organization tasked with reducing litter in the state and helping to facilitate Green Up Day. Its website, greenupvermont.org, has a list of local coordinators, details about how Green Up is done in each town, and a wealth of information about Green Up Day itself.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Alberghini said she made a point of contacting real estate offices to get the word out to new residents moving to Vermont about Green Up Day. “It’s not only for the physical greening up of Vermont but it’s also to welcome these newcomers into the community and introduce them and have them feel like they belong in their communities by having these events to go to or events to participate in,” she said.

This is Alberghini’s third Green Up Day as statewide coordinator. “I can’t tell you how many volunteers will be out there, but I can tell you that the excitement and the way people are approaching Green Up Day has been different since I started in 2019,” she said. “I haven’t gone through a non-COVID Green Up in a leadership role yet, so this is really fun and fascinating to me. There’s definitely more of a festive feel around this year and people are really excited to get out.”

When Alberghini isn’t focused on coordinating details for Green Up Day itself, she works on other related efforts such as connecting with schools to educate children about litter and ways to go about reducing it.

“One thing we’re taking on year-round is education on reducing waste,” said Alberghini. “In the school systems, we’re teaching about the reduction of single-use plastics like water bottles. We were involved in the water bottle filling station grant that we have going on now that places 33 units in different municipalities throughout the state.”

Two of those filling stations will be located in Waterbury and Duxbury – one each at the Ice Center and Crossett Brook Middle School. “It’s just planting different seeds of knowledge and how kids can feel empowered to make a difference that way,” Alberghini said. 

Green Up in Waterbury 

In Waterbury, Green Up bags are available at the municipal offices and at Sunflower Market on Rt. 100. On Saturday, May 7, there will be two drop-off locations for people to bring their filled bags: the town highway garage on Guptil Road from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Rodney’s Transfer Station on River Road near the Ice Center from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.  

Green Up coordinator Lisa Scagliotti noted that Green Up drop-offs will only be open on May 7. If people Green Up before then, they can either dispose of filled bags with their own trash or wait until May 7 to drop them off, she said. Also, volunteers are reminded to not leave bags along roadsides as there is no pickup service. 

Waterbury has an online signup to help coordinate efforts at the website  tinyurl.com/WaterburyGreenUp2022. The signup is not required but it helps volunteers “claim” a spot and see where others are planning to work, Scagliotti said. 

Volunteers are reminded to dress for Green Up with work gloves, mud boots, and long pants to help to avoid ticks near tall grass or brush. If working with children, choose a location away from traffic such as in a neighborhood, on side streets, in parks, along trails, etc. 

A few other notes for Waterbury Green Up volunteers: 

• TIRES: Any tires found during Green Up are accepted for free at either location. People may take personal used tires to Rodney's location to recycle for $5 each.  

• Redeemable bottles and cans: If possible, bag returnable 5- and 15-cent bottles and cans separately from trash. Drop off returnables at the town garage site. (Household returnables will be accepted, too.)

• Metal: Household and scrap metal will be accepted for free at both locations. Rodney’s accepts appliances at his facility with a $10 charge for anything containing freon.

Finally, Green Up is not a time to drop off household waste, hazardous waste, electronics or propane tanks.

Contact: Waterbury coordinator Lisa Scagliotti, lscagliotti@comcast.net or 802-373-5878.

Green Up in Duxbury 

The Duxbury Land Trust is coordinating Duxbury's Green Up for the 25th year. 

Town coordinator Audrey Quackenbush asks residents to consider helping out by working on their own road and/or another one that needs volunteers. 

Green Up bags are available in the black mailbox at the Town Clerk's office. 

On May 7, volunteers should bring filled bags to the Town Office/Highway Garage and place them in dumpsters that will be available that day. Quackenbushh reminds volunteers that Green Up is about roadside cleanup. It is not intended to collect household items for disposal as the town pays the trash bill, she said.

“Green Up is an opportunity to work as a family or team. It is great for kids to experience the example of environmental concern modeled by their parents and other adults,” Quackenbush said. “And they can earn a little money by turning in the bottles and cans for deposit.”

Quackenbush asks Duxbury volunteers to let her know where you plan to work. Volunteers should avoid Route 100 in Duxbury where crews from the Vermont Agency of Transportation will pick up, she noted.

All volunteers should be careful not to pick up any items that look hazardous such as needles. Report those locations to your local coordinator. 

Contact: Duxbury coordinator Audrey Quackenbush, audreyq@myfairpoint.net or 802-244-7512. 

Times Argus Staff Writer Keith Whitcomb Jr. contributed to this report. His original story ran in the Times Argus on April 26.