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Corporate Social Responsibility
'Our Pick'
10.24.2006 - 09:10am ET
Keep America Beautiful's Great American Cleanup Brings Sense of Commitment, Pride to Neighborhoods Across America
2006 Results Show that Volunteers Divert Record Number of Plastic Bottles, Scrap Tires from Waste Stream
STAMFORD, Conn. - After four months of tabulating data from all 50
states, the results are in. Thanks to the efforts of 2.2 million
volunteers across America, more than 37 million plastic bottles and more
than 2.5 million scrap tires were diverted from the waste stream during
Keep America Beautiful's Great American Cleanup™, the nation's
largest community improvement program which takes place annually from
March 1 through May 31.
These highlights were among the official results announced today by Great
American Cleanup Managing Director Gail Cunningham, and were emblematic of
the scale of this national grassroots effort to clean up, green up, fix up
and revitalize neighborhoods from coast to coast.
"Through the Great American Cleanup, Keep America Beautiful's mission to
improve communities is put into action," said G. Raymond Empson, president
of Keep America Beautiful. "We know that our participating organizations
are bringing a sense of ownership and pride to their respective
communities, making them safer, cleaner and more economically viable."
Across America, volunteers, employing 4 million GLAD ForceFlex® Trash
Bags, the "Official Trash Bag" of the Great American Cleanup, removed more
than 228 million pounds of litter and debris. The volunteers, registering
more than 7.5 million volunteer hours, collected 10 percent more litter
and debris than the all-time record of 2005. As impressive, the dollar
value of volunteer hours logged during the event translates into a
contribution of nearly $129 million in wages, significantly lowering the
financial and organizational burden of waste removal on local and state
governments.
Other Great American Cleanup 2006 results highlights include:
10,200 illegal dump sites clean, which is more than double the number
of sites cleaned in 2005
168,000 miles of streets, roads and highways cleaned and beautified,
approximately equal to seven times around the earth
3,900 miles of hiking, biking and nature trails cleaned, equivalent
to a trail stretching from Key West, Fla., to Seattle
38.5 million pounds of aluminum and steel recycled, an 80 percent
increase over 2005's total
4.8 million pounds of electronics recycled, a 32 percent increase
over 2005's total
5.4 million plants, flowers and bulbs planted, a 29 percent increase
over 2005's total
65,400 acres of parks/public lands cleaned, a 28 percent increase
over 2005's total
Keep America Beautiful works with national sponsors and local
community-based organizations during the Great American Cleanup to conduct
30,000 events in 15,000 communities, producing remarkable results through
"reduce, reuse, recycle" programs, beautification initiatives, and
hands-on experiential education.
For the fourth consecutive year, President George W. Bush served as
Honorary Chair of the Great American Cleanup, with Mrs. Laura Bush joining
him as Honorary Chair for the second consecutive year.
The Great American Cleanup kicked off on March 2 in Biloxi, Miss., with
the Hurricane Katrina Restoration project. The project was conducted in
an effort to clean up, fix up and beautify the heart of a community
ravaged by the Hurricane Katrina disaster.
Great American Cleanup national sponsor Troy Bilt® created a tranquil
community reading garden on the town green for all ages to enjoy as part
of its Landscape America© national program. Volunteers also removed
debris, replanted the Purple Heart Memorial garden, and restored the
fountain and outdoor sculptures in Glennon Guice Park. Military personnel
removed storm debris from a two-mile frontage area of the beach and from
the water. In addition, volunteers replanted school gardens and removed
litter and debris from the grounds of Nativity BVM School.
"With the guiding hand of our state and local affiliates in Mississippi,
and the assistance of our national sponsors, we were pleased to be able to
mobilize Great American Cleanup volunteers this year in Biloxi, where the
help was much-needed," added Empson.
Moreover, Keep America Beautiful teamed up with Pepsi-Cola North America's
Aquafina water brand and SAM'S CLUB® to "Return the Warmth" to communities
across the nation by providing incentives for local, school-based PET
recycling projects. More than 37 million PET bottles were diverted from
the waste stream because of the massive effort of high school students
across the country. In appreciation, communities will receive 100,000
fleece jackets, made from recycled PET, for distribution to needy
children. In addition to providing donated fleece jackets, SAM'S CLUB®
provided the 50 schools that collected the most PET bottles with $1,000
grants in the form of SAM'S CLUB® gift cards.
"We're excited to be a part of the 'Return the Warmth' program because it
not only promotes recycling, but 'completes the loop' by turning the
recycled materials into an essential product for needy kids," Empson said.
"Aquafina and SAM'S CLUB should be commended for this innovative
program."
Great American Cleanup volunteers and Firestone Complete Auto Care™
and TiresPlus™ employee volunteers contributed to the record scrap
tire effort of collecting more than 2.5 million scrap tires, a 21 percent
improvement from the 2005 program, and 118,000 car batteries, which is an
increase of 131 percent from 2005. Firestone Complete Auto Care and
TiresPlus employee volunteers were involved in these efforts from coast to
coast, also collecting used oil and donating wood chippers.
"The best part of our 25th annual Clean Up Akron week, which took place
during the Great American Cleanup, was the terrific support of the
Firestone corporate volunteers," said Keep Akron Beautiful Executive
Director Paula Davis. "They went way beyond our expectations and provided
a tremendous service to the community."
Other creative sponsor initiatives included The Scotts Miracle-Gro
Company's community green space program in which KAB affiliates in
Charlotte, N.C., Chesapeake, Va., Oakland, Calif., and Chicago produced
long-lasting vibrant community green spaces with Scott's Miracle-Gro
providing essential support through cash grants and donated materials.
American Honda's "Road to a Cleaner America" returned in 2006 for the
second year to help protect and beautify the nation's roadways. This
year's program awarded a Civic Hybrid to a lucky recipient. Honda is also
awarding grants to the three Great American Cleanup participating
organizations that collected the most pounds of litter and debris; cleaned
up the most miles of streets, roads and highways; and recruited the largest
number of volunteers per capita.
Waste Management continues to give generous support to local Great
American Cleanup efforts on a national scale. The company and its
representatives conduct in-school educational sessions, provide local
grants, supply tools, volunteers, and, most important, provide many large
trash containers, trucks and heavy equipment for moving the collected
litter and debris. In addition, Waste Management provided extra support
for the "Return the Warmth" program, which included recycling services,
measuring results, employee volunteers, collection bins, and the
transportation of the collected PET bottles.
Pepsi-Cola Company's local bottlers and representatives nationwide
contributed in-kind product, and have participated in local events
throughout the country. In addition, Pepsi-Cola sponsored the creation of
Great American Cleanup posters that were distributed to participating
organizations, helping to promote local programs and build national
awareness.
America's companies are dedicated to supporting and sponsoring the efforts
for the 2006 Great American Cleanup. The National Sponsors included:
American Honda Motor Company, Inc., Firestone Complete Auto Care™ and
TiresPlus™, GLAD ForceFlex® Trash Bags from The Glad Products
Company, Pepsi-Cola Company, SAM'S CLUB®, The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company,
Sparkle® Paper Towels from Georgia-Pacific Corporation, Troy-Bilt®, Waste
Management, Inc. and the Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company. Educational Partner:
Rubber Manufacturers Association.
About Keep America Beautiful, Inc.
Keep America Beautiful, Inc., established in 1953, is the nation's largest
volunteer-based community action and education organization. This national
nonprofit forms public-private partnerships and programs that engage
individuals to take greater responsibility for improving their community
environments. The Great American Cleanup™ is the organization's
signature program that mobilizes millions of volunteers to improve their
communities through hands-on participation. For more information, visit www.kab.org.
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