March 23, 2020

Due to the public health and safety concerns with the Coronavirus, many of the 2020 spring cleanups scheduled throughout the Corridor have been canceled or postponed to later in the year.

Here are some suggested safety tips from Keep Massachusetts Beautiful If you decide to clean up litter on your own in the coming days or weeks:

• You must wear rubber or latex gloves.
• Practice physical distancing—keep 6 feet apart from others. Consider just going out as a family or with a neighbor or two.
• If you include children, make sure they are CLOSELY supervised.
• Use a trash grabber tool, or even an old set of kitchen tongs.
• Hose down gloves and tools and/or disinfect after each use.
• Wear brightly colored clothing and clean up in the direction of oncoming traffic. Do not wander into the street.
• If you find a needle, syringe, or any drug paraphernalia, DO NOT TOUCH. Contact your local police station.

Immediately after the cleanup, wash your hands and arms and change your clothes. It’s also a good idea to check for ticks.

Because your effort is not part of an organized event, make plans in advance to remove the trash bags from the cleanup site. You can reach out to your local DPW department to ask for their assistance, but be prepared to bring it home to put by the curb. Be mindful of items that do not belong in your municipal trash collection. View list here: https://www.mass.gov/doc/fact-sheet-what-are-the-massachusetts-waste-bans/download

Neighborhood Challenge: gather friends and family (when deemed safe to do so and being mindful of physical distance) to clean your street or block. Follow the safety tips above and send us pictures. If you post to social media, use the hashtag #BHCTrashResponsibly.

To add a cleanup event to our list, or for more information about Trash Responsibly, contact Bonnie Combs at [email protected].

Thank you for your support in helping to keep Blackstone Heritage Corridor litter-free!