Creating a Clean Water Future One Neighborhood at a Time What is a community cleanup? A community cleanup brings volunteers together to clean, repair, and improve public spaces or other areas (such as vacant lots or abandoned properties) that have been neglected, vandalized, or misused. Cleanup projects can involve all kinds of public spaces—parks, creeks or riverbanks, schoolyards, sidewalks, playing fields, and even parking lots. What does it take to start a community cleanup? A good first step is to look around at areas that need attention. Is a neighborhood park littered? Is an empty lot filled with tires, construction materials, and overgrown bushes? Is a nearby stream an eyesore that discourages people from enjoying it? Look at the people in your group. What skills do they have? Picking up trash requires one level of skills; hauling huge hunks of concrete or using chainsaws to cut up lumber calls for another. Clean Water Future Helping hands are the most important ingredient for a successful outcome; many of the materials and services needed can be donated by local businesses or environmental organizations, even for a major community spruce-up. Create partnerships. Joining up with another neighborhood or community group can provide more help to get the work done. Environmental groups, civic associations, the local recreation and parks departments, business associations, service clubs, and religious and social groups may be able to help or suggest other groups. From the director: Every neighborhood has areas—public parks, schoolyards, sidewalks—that are neglected, vandalized, or rundown. You can help clean up those places by getting involved in a neighborhood cleanup project. A neighborhood cleanup is a project in which volunteers of all ages work together to spruce up their neighborhood. By playing your part in cleaning up your neighborhood, you will create a clean water future for your community and for Mobile Bay. 1|Page If the proposed cleanup site is privately owned, you will need to get written permission from the owner. You may have to check local land records to identify the owner. For a public site, contact local government agencies, such as the permits and licenses office or the police department, to find out what permits may be needed, what guidelines exist, and what kind of help is available. What are some of the challenges of a community cleanup? You’ll need help from other youth and adults. Recruiting core groups to support the effort can be a challenge because many people are busy with other things. Point out the benefits to the neighborhood and the whole community of cleaning up the area and encourage the idea of partnerships and friends working together. Be aware of any hazards—drug paraphernalia, poison ivy, thorny bushes, or glass and metal that could cut and harm volunteers. If you find any hazardous materials make note of the location and contact the local police precinct or parks department. What does it take to keep a community cleanup going? for example, from one neighborhood to the next. Or, a specific site can be “adopted” and kept clean. Sharing the work—let people do different jobs that appeal to them— makes each new cleanup a fresh opportunity for volunteers. Special themes or “bring-a-friend” days can help liven up the work. Make sure your community cleanup goals are realistic. It’s a good idea to start with a project that can be accomplished in one afternoon and work up to larger projects. By cleaning up a park in a day, you will generate positive momentum for the next project. Whether your cleanup project is a onetime event or a year-long commitment, don’t forget to celebrate the results. Before-and-after photos and videotapes, coverage by local news media and thank-you letters from area residents can help. Refreshments throughout the cleanup and a meal (sandwiches, pizza party, or a cookout) at the end can make volunteers look forward to working together again. For help planning your next community cleanup contact the Clean Water Future Team by calling 251431-6409 or visiting www.CleanWaterFuture.com. Together we can Create A Clean Water Future now and for generations to come. A cleanup can be a one-time event. The activity can also continue by moving the cleanup from one location to another— Clean Water Future 2|Page What are some of the rewards of a community cleanup? A community cleanup encourages community ownership and creates community pride. Good luck with your project and—Go for it! A community cleanup provides some of the most tangible rewards of any program. The results are immediately visible. People might even stop to thank you while you’re still working. Children may come out of their houses and want to join in cleaning up the street. And as your volunteers walk, bike, or drive by the site, each one will take pride in knowing that he or she helped regain an attractive, usable space for the neighborhood. Clean Water Future 3|Page Responsibilities of a Cleanup Host: Pre cleanup steps: 1. Determine cleanup location a. Neighborhoods, community blocks, schools, businesses, churches 2. Select a date and time a. Advertise selected date, time and location. 3. Pre-screen cleanup site for hazardous materials a. Contact local police precinct or parks department to have any hazardous materials removed. 4. Designate a trash disposal site within the selected cleanup location a. Coordinate disposal site with public works department for trash pick-up scheduling. 5. Organize volunteers a. Ask neighbors, friends, family 6. Invite Your Elected Officials a. Send the mayor and your local representatives an invitation to your cleanup— it’s great to let them know what is happening in their district, and provides a little extra interest for the press. You can find your representatives and their contact information at www.votesmart.org - just type in your zip code. 7. Establish Cleanup Captains a. Captains are helpful when tackling a large area to help with volunteers and communicating with home station. 8. Designate home station a. Location of sign-in/out sheet, first aid, equipment pick up and return, safety information Day of cleanup: 1. Come early a. Arrive at your assigned location at least twenty minutes before volunteers are scheduled to arrive. Give yourself plenty of time to set up your volunteer sign-in sheets and cleanup supplies. 2. Sign in and out ALL volunteers a. This information is needed for future community cleanups and improvement grant opportunities. 3. Conduct volunteer orientation a. Review Safety Instructions with volunteers. Be sure each volunteer has signed in. 4. Review location map with volunteers a. Designate Cleanup Captains and/or volunteers to specific areas if necessary. 5. Trash disposal site a. Instruct volunteers to leave all collected bags of trash at the designated trash disposal site. 6. Equipment a. Sign out any barrowed equipment or tools, give volunteers garbage bags, gloves and safety vests. 7. Cleanup end time a. Inform volunteers of what time they should return to the home station. Clean Water Future 4|Page 8. Equipment a. Sign in any barrowed equipment or tools, collect safety vests and gloves. 9. Report cleanup success a. Turn in sign-in sheets, photos, left over materials, equipment or tools, gloves and safety vests. Cleanup kit contains: Communities in action bulletin o bulletin contains great tips for conducting a successful community cleanup Map of your local area o to help with location selection Volunteer sign-in sheet o ALL volunteers must sign in and out Safety Instructions o Do’s and Don’ts and first aid instructions Ideas for recruiting volunteers: Church groups: talk to the religious leader in your community about conducting a Sunday morning cleanup. Have the pastor/priest ask the congregation to come to Sunday morning service ready to work. Worship leader could give a short sermon on why we should protect the earth and keep it clean. Congregation members would then go out and conduct a two hour cleanup within and around the church community or neighborhood while the elders of the church prepared a home-cooked meal for the congregation volunteers. Youth groups: contact Boys & Girls clubs, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and/or church youth groups. Community residents: ask your neighbors and community residents to commit two hour of their time on a selected day to help clean up the neighborhood. Social or civic clubs: if you belong to a social or civic club, ask the members to commit a few hours of their time on a selected day. Cleanup could be held in the community of your meeting location. Businesses: Ask your employees to commit a few hours of their time to clean up around the building or block of the business. Fraternities or Sororities: Ask fraternity or sorority members to earn their service hours by volunteering their time to help beautify your neighborhood. If you have any questions or need assistance please contact: The Clean Water Future Team 251-431-6409 [email protected] Clean Water Future 5|Page SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS Safety Rules: Please share this information with the volunteers at your cleanup event 1. Be aware of your surroundings at all time. 2. Stay out of tall grass and shrubs. 3. Wear long pants, long sleeves, socks, and closed-toe shoes for protection. If you do not, you put yourself at risk for tick bites, poison ivy reaction, burs and scratches, injured toes and feet, and other injuries. 4. Use sun block and bug spray if desired. 5. Cleanup areas often have varieties of poison ivy, oak, or sumac. It is advised to take a shower after the event, scrubbing your skin with soap and water. 6. Do not lift heavy objects. If you need help, please ask another volunteer or Cleanup Captain. 7. Wear gloves AT ALL TIME for protection. Be extremely careful with sharp objects and glass. Children should not pick up any sharp objects, glass or heavy debris. 8. Stay out of slippery, rocky, or steep and dangerous areas. 9. Report any injury to your Cleanup Captain and immediately call 911 if there is a serious injury. 10. Children under 18 must be accompanied by an adult. No one should stray from the group. 11. Drink plenty of water in order to stay hydrated. 12. Watch out for wildlife. If you see trapped or injured wildlife, please inform your Cleanup Captain. Never approach an injured animal. 13. Hazardous materials should not be handled by volunteers. Alert your Cleanup Captain if any hazardous materials are found. 14. If you haven’t done so already, please sign in. Clean Water Future 6|Page WARNING POISON IVY – POISON OAK – POISON SUMAC “Leaves of Three, Let It Be” Facts: Poison ivy and its similar cousins (poison oak and poison sumac) are normally observed growing low to the ground. Average height is fifteen inches to three feet in height. Mature vines growing upward on a tree and are light gray and have thousands of hair like fibers (two inches long and as wide as three and can also cause the rash. Poison Sumac are tall shrubs or small trees with 7-11 leaflets arranged in pairs, and an single leaflet at the end of the midrib. Yellowish green flowers and whitish green fruits hang in loose clusters. inches) with alternate leaves additional Poison ivy rash occurs if contact is made with the urushiol oil (pronounced oo-roo-she-all) from the plant. This can be done by directly touching plants and clean up tools with your bare hands. Symptoms: Itching of the skin in exposed areas Skin redness or inflammation in the exposed area Tenderness of the skin in the exposed area Warmth of the exposed area may occur Skin lesion or rash at the site of exposure may include (Redness, blister, pimples) Clean Up Procedures: The best protection is to avoid poison ivy in work areas, if possible. Report symptoms immediately if contact is made to your skin. Wear long sleeves and long pants, wear work gloves, when cleaning near brush or trees near poison ivy. Do not touch the pickup ends of any tools used in the cleanup. Quick Action Needed: Because urushiol oil can penetrate the skin within minutes do not waste time if exposed. The faster your skin is cleansed, the greater the chance of removing the urushiol oil before it gets attached to the skin. Cleansing may not stop the initial outbreak of the rash if more than10 minutes have passed, but it can help prevent further spread. If exposed to poison ivy, oak or sumac, Follow the steps below: Clean Water Future 7|Page Cleanse exposed skin with generous amounts of isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol. (Don’t return to the woods or yard the same day. Alcohol removes your skin’s protection along with the urushiol oil and any new contact will cause the urushiol oil to penetrate twice as fast.) Wash exposed skin with water ONLY. Find a water hose or sink somewhere. Get to FIRST AID STATION immediately for further directions When you get home clothes, shoes, tools, and anything else that may have been in contact with the urushiol oil should be wiped off with alcohol and water and wear gloves while completing the steps and then discard them. Signs of an Emergency: About 15 percent of the 120 million Americans who are allergic to poison ivy, oak, and sumac are so highly sensitive to the plants that they break out in a rash and begin to swell in 4 to 12 hours instead of the normal 24 to 48. Their eyes may swell shut and blisters may erupt on their skin. This is an emergency. Call EMS or 911 and get to a hospital as soon as possible. Clean Water Future 8|Page
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