The City of Fort Pierce has launched its "Our City, Our Responsibility" campaign as a part of its ongoing Keep Fort Pierce Beautiful (KFPB) program.
The initiative sets its sights on littering, and the toll it has on the city's growth.
"Littering is a problem in our community. And we have such high goals for economic development, public safety, and protecting our environment. And if we don't get ahead of this as much as we possibly can, then those goals are only going to be a distant reality for us," Marsha Commond, Special Projects Coordinator for the city said. "And so we want to be able to kind of get as much momentum going now."
Commond noted that littering has long been a contentious issue for Fort Pierce residents.
"The community has been vocal in the past and even to this day about litter issues. We want to take the lead as their local government and say, 'hey, this is what we're going to do to help facilitate change and empower you to be part of the change,'" she said.
The initiative, Commond said, seeks to foster cooperation between city government and inhabitants to help keep the city beautiful.
"We have teams within our public works department that are supporting overall goals. Since we're already in line operationally, we have resources to put towards hopefully making this successful overall," she said. "The city also wants folks to get a sense of ownership, because though we play a role from an operation standpoint to clean up our city, it really is the task of the community — those who are generating the waste or the litter — to take an active role."
As a city with a deep relationship with its wildlife, the campaign is a necessary one, Commond says.
"We want to show people this is what litter does when we don't control it," she said. "We want to make sure to include the wildlife that we have to protect and how they get negatively impacted when we lose control of managing our litter or our waste."
Besides the visual and environmental benefits, Commond also said there are safety benefits.
"When your community has a lot of litter or what have you, people don't feel safe and it can sometimes welcome in the behaviors you don't want that can contribute towards crime and mischievous behavior," she said.
There are a number of ways to get involved with the campaign. Among them, is participating in some of the programs KFPB offers, including:
- Adopt-A-Road Program – Commit to keeping a roadway litter-free.
- Community Cleanups – Quarterly events with free supplies provided.
- Great American Cleanup – Annual citywide volunteer event.
Volunteers are provided trash bags, gloves, vests and tools. Collected litter can be reported through the city’s Litter Cleanup Report Form to schedule pickup and receive recognition.
Outside of programs, you can also do your part in little ways.
"You don't have to join a program to participate. We encourage it, because we're able to track and we're able to recognize people who are registering with us who are committing themselves, but if you're outside taking a stroll at a park or you're walking down the street and you notice litter, you can pick it up," Commond said.
For more information on volunteer opportunities, you can visit the Keep Fort Pierce Beautiful Webpage.