LUMBERTON — The Robeson County Clean and Green anti-littering campaign on Tuesday is sponsoring “Tarp Tuesday,” an initiative to encourage county residents to tie-down any trash and debris that they may be carrying in the back of their pickup trucks so it doesn’t end up as roadside debris.

“We want people to secure their loads and cover any trash they are transporting to a collection site to minimize the risk of littering,” said Kristina Cummings, who is the recycling coordinator for the Robeson County Department of Solid Waste and a member of the Clean and Green Steering Committee.

On Tuesday, a limited number of free tarps will be available at each of Robeson County’s 20 compactor sites, Cummings said. They will be distributed to users of each site on a first-come, first-served basis. Information will be provided to compact site users on why trash needs to be covered when it is being transported for disposal.

Compactor sites are open from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, and from 1 to 6 p.m. on Sundays.

Cummings said that the county recently received 150 free tarps through a grant from the Keep North Carolina Beautiful organization.

In addition to tarps, large plastic bags can be picked up at no cost at the compactor sites by people who want to join roadside cleanup efforts. Each person can receive up to five bags.

Cummings said that if an individual or organization plans a large roadside cleanup, they should contact the county’s Solid Waste office to receive additional bags. The office is located at the Robeson County Landfill at 246 Landfill Road in St. Pauls. The phone number is 910-865-3348.

Cummings told the campaign’s steering committee recently that since Clean and Green’s official campaign kickoff on July 1, there has been a 54 percent increase in the amount of “roadside” trash delivered to the county landfill in St. Pauls by the Department of Transportation. That department, she said, picks up bags of trash that individuals and groups holding roadway cleanups have left along roadsides to be picked up for disposal.

According to Cummings, there will be a Clean and Green information booth set up at the Pembroke Day celebration on Sept. 23. On Sept. 24, the steering committee will hold a meeting at 6 p.m. st the Lumber River Council of Governments office in COMtech business park.

The Robeson County Clean and Green anti-littering campaign is sponsoring "Tarp Tuesday" on Tuesday.
https://www.robesonian.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/web1_Clean_and_green_pdf_cmyk.jpgThe Robeson County Clean and Green anti-littering campaign is sponsoring "Tarp Tuesday" on Tuesday.
Wants people to join cleanup effort

By Bob Shiles

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Bob Shiles can be reached at 910-416-5165.