Volunteers fill in the old fountain at Cedartown City Hall and replace it with a green space during last year's Keep Polk Beautiful Great American Clean up.
Related Earth Day activities for the community will encourage responsibility for the local environment. Volunteers are invited to register at Peek’s Park from 8:30-9 a.m. Small groups will go to assigned target areas for litter pickup, graffiti paint-over, or beautification efforts, before meeting back at Peek’s Park for lunch.
The City of Cedartown will offer Trash Amnesty Week from Monday, April 18 through Thursday, April 21 as well. During this week, citizens can bring large unwanted objects to any one of the following 5 locations at no cost: the end of 4th Street at the old Optimist ball club field, at Turner Park on Jefferson Street, Georgia Avenue on Helen Street, at Cave Spring Road and Jule Peek Avenue, and on South Main Street and Clyde Drive, behind D’s Towels.
Waste Industries is donating the use of dumpsters for collection this week only. City employees will be available from during normal business hours for those needing assistance with unloading. You must be a citizen of Cedartown and provide a tax or utility bill or some other form of proof of citizenship in order to dump items. No tires or paint will be accepted.
In addition to trash dumpsters, there will be recycling containers at the same five locations. The community is encouraged to bring the following recyclables: Paper, cardboard, #1 and 2 plastic bottles, aluminum cans, newspapers, and appliances without Freon. Electronics such as computers, monitors, phones, etc., may be taken to the convenience center on Canal Street, where they will be shredded for security before recycling.
Businesses are encouraged to use their signs to discourage littering during the week of the Great American Cleanup. Keep America Beautiful has launched a new campaign, “Littering is wrong, too!” Contact KPB below for ideas of fun ways to word your signs and discourage litter.
An Easter Egg Hunt will be incorporated into the cleanup day for prizes for all volunteers. Keep Polk Beautiful is currently seeking sponsors for prizes.
KPB encourages any and all individuals or groups to participate in the Great American Cleanup whether you can attend the special events or not.
“You can organize your own neighborhood or group activity, or just strike out as a family or individual to make a difference,” said Sharon Coffman, KPB executive director. “We are happy to support you by supplying garbage bags, but request that you register with us so we can have a record of your hard work.”
Call or email Keep Polk Beautiful at 678-246-1083 or kpbeautiful@polkcountygeorgia.us to register.
“Let’s make this the best Great American Cleanup ever for Polk County,” Coffman said.
This huge landfill is open for the dumping of garbage of all types from counties throughout the northwestern portion of our state, including portions of the Atlanta metro area. It has literally become a "mountain" of garbage which can be clearly seen from U.S. 278 between Rockmart and Cedartown to any travelers on that road.
Grady Road Landfill is administered by Waste Industries, but is owned by YOU the taxpayers of Polk since it is actually owned by Polk County. The sad truth of the matter, however, is that our current county commission has become addicted to the funds the landfill brings to the county coffers each month. They're willing to allow Polk to be the dumping ground of northwest Georgia rather than do the right thing and accept only the trash from Polk residents.
With such a blight upon our landscape, the concept of "Keeping Polk Beautiful" is absolutely ridiculous. You, the residents of Polk, however, can do something about this blight. Contact the county commissioner that represents your area. Tell him you're not going to vote for him next time around if he doesn't get serious about restricting Grady Landfill.