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Highway Clean-up Campaign
Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal, May 3, 2011

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Nova Scotia Adopt-a-Highway Program

Adopt-A-Highway logoLooking for a way to make a difference?

The Nova Scotia Adopt-A-Highway program gives volunteer groups the opportunity to help their communities by collecting litter and beautifying roadsides and interchange areas.

In Nova Scotia, the program was started in 1997 with an initial 18 volunteer groups. Today, we have over 160 groups who have adopted more than 1000 kilometers of secondary road and fourteen 100-Series highway Interchange areas (Exits) throughout the province. On average, 5-6 thousand bags of garbage and recyclable materials are picked up along adopted Nova Scotia highways each year.


Why adopt?
It's a free, easy way for groups to help their communities, make a visible impact and earn some well-deserved recognition.

What do I do next? It's simple.
  • Choose a five kilometer stretch of secondary highway or a 100-Series Highway Interchange/Exit.
  • Contact the Adopt-A-Highway office for an application.
  • Clean your highway or interchange twice per year; once in the spring and once in the fall.
  • Separate your recyclable materials from regular garbage.
  • Submit your cleanup information to the Adopt-A-Highway office after each cleanup.
  • Receive two Adopt-A-Highway signs marking either end of the adopted highway section or either side of the adopted interchange.

Adopt-A-Highway and the Department of Transportation will provide your volunteers with appropriate permits, safety vests, and litter bags. We can also assist with transporting the collected litter to approved landfill sites.

How much of a difference does adopting make?
Motorists respond. Seeing our Adopt-A-Highway signs and our volunteers at work resonates with would-be littering offenders. Research has shown that highways adopted by Adopt-A-Highway Volunteers are generally less littered than those that haven't been adopted.

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Program supporters:
Nova Scotia Environment
Department of Transportation and Infrastructure
The Lions Clubs of Nova Scotia (founding member)
Clean Nova Scotia (founding member)
The Women's Institutes of Nova Scotia (founding member)
Our major financial supporter is RRFB Nova Scotia (Resource Recovery Fund Board)

For more information on the Adopt-A-Highway Program email the WINS office or call (902) 843-9467. You can also visit us online at http://www.novascotia.ca/tran/hottopics/aah.asp or read our litterature newsletter.

  Last Update: January 22, 2013