Spring Clean-Up Time in the Capital

As spring speckles and the snow begins to melt, it’s time to get busy cleaning up our capital after Jack Frost’s long hold over us. Littered across this beautiful city, left out in the winter’s cold we’ll find discarded coffee cups, old cigarette butts, stray plastic bags and papers – the list could continue ad infinitum. Something about winter’s frozen grip seems to allow this build up of trash, so it’s only natural that the sun’s welcomed melt brings along with it a much needed clean up.

The Capital region has a month-long challenge called Cleaning the Capital, sponsored by GLAD, which runs from mid-April to mid-May. By registering your clean-up project, cleaning supplies will be provided to your group. The official Capital Cleanup Weekend is April 27,2018 to April 29,2018 but your project does not have to take place during this weekend to be counted. The deadline to register for GLAD’s Cleanup project is May 15^th, with May 31^st being the deadline to submit your online cleanup report.

Although the above is a wonderful initiative to get involved within your community, it is not the only way to be a part of this year’s Spring Cleaning season. Keeping your community clean, and helping your neighbourhood shine is not always a sanctioned event, that must be done in a certain way. Every single individual could unofficially participate in helping the community sparkle once again. Simply make the effort to pick up litter when you see it, grab that floating plastic bag on your morning walk and take it home with you. Bring an extra plastic bag when you take the kids to the park and pick up garbage along the way, throw that empty coffee cup into the recycling bin, or empty that car ashtray into a garbage bag at home.

Community clean ups don’t often require largely sanctioned events, although they are extremely helpful. Every individual can help do their part, just one piece of trash at a time. Take care of your neighbourhood, so the light and beauty it provides, can take care of you.