Adopt-A-Highway Cleanup Campaign Underway

Volunteers across the province will soon be working beside provincial roadways to remove garbage thrown by drivers over the winter.

"The province's melting snow cover is exposing months' worth of trash alongside Nova Scotia's highways," said Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal Minister Geoff MacLellan. "Fortunately we have volunteers from the Adopt-A-Highway Program to clean up the mess others have left behind."

The internationally renowned program co-ordinates the efforts of volunteers who pick up trash alongside roadways. Last year, 2,101 volunteers cleaned along 822 kilometres of highways and five interchanges. They gathered 4,177 bags of garbage and 276 bags of recyclable material.

"We're sad to see that so many drivers are careless with their trash, but our amazing volunteers are not discouraged," said Gina Bain, co-ordinator, Adopt-A-Highway Program. "They go out every spring and make a difference by helping their community and their environment."

Volunteers wearing fluorescent orange safety vests may be close to the road's driving surface as they pick up litter. Drivers should slow down and use extra caution when volunteers are working beside the highway.

Premier Stephen McNeil has proclaimed Monday, May 4, as Adopt-A-Highway Day in Nova Scotia.

More information is available on the group's website at http://novascotia.ca/agri/wins/adopt .