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Somers Residents Propose Litter Task Force

SOMERS, N.Y. -- Somers residents Suzy Moravick and Linda Simpson are so tired of seeing litter around town that they have decided to address the problem head-on. Thursday evening they appeared before the town board work session to present their plans for a Somers Beautification Project. 

Their ideas include creating geographic divisions in town, each with its own task force to conduct quarterly town-wide clean-up campaigns. Orange garbage bags would be provided free of charge by the Somers and New York State Highway Departments and collected by the authorities within a few days.

Business owners and residents would be encouraged to adopt the roads within 200 yards of their locations and clear accumulating litter every three months. 

“If each business and resident cleaned up their own property, we could have this town cleaned up in no time,” Moravick said. “There’s not a lot of empty space left. Everything is owned by somebody.” 

Attention-getting signs would be posted at town line roads and elsewhere, warning of fines for littering.

“You notice a sign when it says something like that,” Simpson said. “It really makes you think twice. I’m from California and drove up and down the highways for years. Where there are signs the roads are clean.”

With the project in effect, open trucks would be required to cover their materials with tarps or something similar. Supervisor Mary Beth Murphy pointed out that this is already established by law. 

Another idea is to create an anti-littering campaign among students. 

“I’ll see if I can do a short presentation in the schools,” Simpson added, and noted that teenagers are frequent litterers.

The town board greeted the project with enthusiasm.

“I’ve reached out to the Chamber of Commerce and asked them to reach out to their membership,” Murphy said. “I’ve also reached out to the DEP and Pepsi, who jumped on it, of course, as well as BRIA Carting and IBM and Lincoln Hall. Everybody has been extremely receptive.”

Council member Richard Clinchy even stepped up to support the project, saying that he would take care of Primrose Drive.

Moravick said that people’s first attempts to clean up might take a couple of hours, but after that it would be simpler.

“The more you do, the easier it gets,” Moravick said. "Our big motto for 2012 is 'Keep Somers Clean.'" 

To get involved contact Suzy Moravick at 914-486-0355keepsomersnyclean@yahoo.com or Linda Simpson at lindagaf@optonline.net

 

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