16th Annual Conasauga Watershed Clean-up

DALTON, GA - Residents of Whitfield and Murray Counties are encouraged to help clean-up the Conasauga River during the United Way of Northwest Georgia’s “Make a Difference Day” on Saturday, October 23rd from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm. The Conasauga Watershed Clean-up has been a part of Rivers Alive, a statewide campaign to clean and preserve over 70,000 miles of Georgia’s rivers and streams, for sixteen years.

Six locations through out Whitfield and Murray counties have been selected as clean-up sites:

1. Conasauga River at Lower King’s Bridge/Norton Bridge

2. Conasauga River at Highway 2 bridge

3. Conasauga River at Carlton Petty Road bridge

4. Holly Creek, Murray County, on the Chattahoochee National Forest

5. Mill Creek tributary in the City of Dalton

6. Coahulla Creek at Prater’s Mill

Those interested in volunteering should arrive at their desired clean-up location the day of the event a few minutes before 9:00 am to register. At least the first 200 volunteers will receive a free t-shirt and stainless steel water bottle in appreciation for their participation. Volunteers should dress appropriately. Sturdy shoes or boots, gloves, long pants, and long sleeved shirts are recommended. Hip or chest waders are useful, but are not required. Trash bags and other clean up supplies will be provided.

To download the event flyer with directions or the volunteer waiver, visit www.KeepDaltonWhitfieldBeautiful.org. For additional information, please contact John Lugthart at jlugthart@daltonstate.edu or call 706-272-2485. For more information about efforts in other areas or the statewide campaign, call 404-675-6240 or go to www.RiversAlive.org.

Local Sponsors include Shaw Industries, Dalton Utilities, Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority (DWSWA), The Nature Conservancy (TNC), and the Conasauga River Alliance (CRA).

Coordinators include the Carpet America Recovery Effort (CARE), Carpet & Rug Institute (CRI), CRA, Dalton State College, Dalton Utilities, DWSWA, Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful, TNC and Murray & Whitfield County Extension.

Supporters of the statewide campaign include Georgia Adopt-A-Stream and Project WET, Georgia Department of Natural Resources Environmental Protection Division, Keep Georgia Beautiful, and Georgia Department of Community Affairs.

During the 2009 river cleanup 26,000 volunteers cleaned over 2,150 miles of waterways and removed over 476 tons of trash and garbage including tires, shingles, balls and washing machines from Georgia’s waterways, according to Harold Harbert, Outreach Coordinator with the Environmental Protection Division. Harbert expects Rivers Alive 2010 to involve thousands more volunteers and to continue to be the State’s and one of the South’s largest volunteer efforts to beautify water resources.

Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful Has Successful Spring

Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful, a local Keep America Beautiful affiliate, held several Great American Cleanup activities during the months of March, April and May. The 2010 Great American Cleanup, a national campaign organized by nonprofit Keep America Beautiful, estimated that three million volunteers participated nationwide.

The national 2010 theme, “Green Starts Here,” encourages volunteer groups, community leaders and people of all ages and walks of life to begin creating more sustainable communities through their efforts as volunteers and through their daily choices and actions. It also reflects Keep America Beautiful’s legacy of community improvement activities.

Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful events included Community Pride Day, Valley Point Ruritan Club Park Cleanup and Adopt-a-Mile cleanups. Participants in Adopt a Mile included Textile Rubber & Chemical, Whitfield Co. 4-H, Styron LLC (formerly Dow Chemical) and the Mayo Family. Several recycling education sessions and a backyard composting session were held with the support of the Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority. 

This year KDWB logged the participation of 144 volunteers with a total of 539 volunteer hours of work valued at $11,000. Over 73,660 pounds of litter, debris and bulky waste were collected in the city of Dalton and Whitfield County. Nine miles of road and three acres of parks were cleaned through the efforts of the volunteers. An estimated 610 people attended educational sessions, and over 1,028 residents participated in the variety of events. 

Liz Swafford, executive director of Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful, said, “We would like to thank our national sponsors, Nestlé, Pure Life, Purified Water and the Glad Products Company who supported our events during the Great American Cleanup by providing generous donations of their products. The bottled water and trash bags facilitated several of our local events. Those ranged from litter cleanups to educational sessions about reusing and recycling.” 

The largest event was Community Pride Day during the Great American Cleanup that took place April 18 at the Old Dixie Landfill and Convenience Center, Westside Middle School, North Whitfield Middle School and Eastbrook Middle School. Approximately 577 residents of Whitfield County visited the locations to drop off their bulky waste for disposal and electronics for recycling with no fees. 34.2 tons or 68,400 pounds of bulky waste were disposed of, and 7.3 tons or 14,600 pounds of electronics were collected for recycling. 

“Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful would like to thank the 51 volunteers and staff from KDWB, Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority, and Whitfield County Public Works for making this event possible,” said Ms. Swafford. 

Disposal of bulky items is available year round with no fees at the Old Dixie Landfill and Convenience Center. The same location hosts a drop-off box for recycling electronics (a fee for televisions applies). For more information please visit www.DWSWA.org or call (706)278-5001.

Visit www.KeepDaltonWhitfieldBeautiful.org or call (706)226-6211 to find out more.

Community Pride Day on April 17

DALTON, GA -  Community Pride Day during the Great American Cleanup will be on Saturday, April 17 from 8:00 am to 2:00 pm.  Community Pride Day facilitates Spring Cleaning by allowing Whitfield county residents to dispose of bulky items and electronics without paying disposal fees at select drop-off locations.  The Old Dixie Landfill Convenience Center is the Main Location for this event.  Community Locations include three middle schools, Westside Middle School, Eastbrook Middle School, and North Whitfield Middle School.

All four locations will be accepting bulky items for disposal and electronics for recycling.  Bulky items include furniture, household equipment, and appliances.  Electronics include computers, digital cameras, cell phones, video game systems, and televisions.  Only one television per vehicle will be accepted.

The Old Dixie Landfill Convenience Center is the only location accepting Household Hazardous Waste (HHW).  Items include household pesticides, pool chemicals, varnish and latex paints.  For a complete list of HHW please visit www.DWSWA.org or call 706-277-2545.  Household Hazardous Waste is typically accepted at the Old Dixie Landfill Convenience Center on the third Saturday of the month from 7 am to 2 pm.

Community Pride Day is open to residents of Whitfield County only.  No business, commercial, construction or demolition waste is accepted.  Tires are not included in this event and should be disposed of at a Convenience Center for a minimal $2 fee.  No tires or HHW will be accepted at the schools.

Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful, the Dalton-Whitfield Regional Solid Waste Authority, and Whitfield County Public Works organized this annual event.  For more information or to volunteer, call Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful at 706-226-6211, visit our website www.keepdaltonwhitfieldbeautiful.org, or e-maillswafford@dwswa.org.

Submitted by the Dalton-Whitfield Regional Solid Waste Authority.

Orphan Dalton roads need adoptive caretakers

Story in the Chattanooga Times Free Press: http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2010/mar/18/orphan-dalton-roads-need-adoptive-caretakers/ 

Written By: Kelly Jackson

DALTON, Ga. -- Starting in the 1990s, Adopt-a-Mile volunteers kept as many as 50 miles in Whitfield County clean. But now, far fewer roads have doting volunteers.

In 2009, volunteers cared for about 10 miles. So far in 2010, only four miles have been officially adopted. But Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful is pushing for more.

"(The program's) just been neglected, and we're just really trying to revitalize (it)," said Liz Swafford, executive director of Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful.

Ms. Swafford said the program improves the environment and people are less likely to dump trash on clean roadways.

"Litter cleanups are preventative, and it's just a huge benefit to everybody," she said.

Volunteers are asked to clean litter from their mile at least four times a year. Participants get an Adopt-A-Mile sign on their stretch of roadway. Participation is free.

Danny Welch, corporate environmental health and safety manager for Textile Rubber and Chemical Co., said employees clean the road in front of the business on Connector 3 from its intersection with Highway 41 to Interstate 75.

Employees usually collect six to eight large trash bags on a cleanup day, he said. It gives them a "sense of accomplishment and community pride," he said.

HOW TO ADOPT

Visit the following link or call 706-226-6211

Denise Wood, a board member with Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful, said members hope not only to gain new participants but to re-energize some who were active in the past.

"We just want to get people back on board," she said. "Litter is a big problem."

"Bring One For The Chipper" Event Held at Home Depot In Dalton

By: Kristen Johnson, News Channel 12

One North Georgia organization wants to make sure Christmas Trees don't end up in the landfill.

For the last 19 years, "Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful" hosted its annual recycling event.

"Bring one for the chipper" was held at the Home Depot in Dalton.

By Saturday afternoon more than 80 trees were brought by the location.

Organizers say the free service allows residents to send their trees back to nature as mulch or animal habitats.

"I'm very happy to see that the community is interested in recycling and environmentalism in general and it's just great to see how people still feel positive about helping the earth and doing something right for the environment," Liz Swafford, Executive Director of Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautfield said.

In return for their tree, participants received the choice between a seedling or packet of seeds.

And don't worry if you didn't get a chance to drop off your tree, the city of Dalton collects trees on the curb.

Whitfield County residents can visit one of four convenience centers.

Public works employees and Dalton State College students also helped with Saturday's event.

Click here for video.