Dr. Karen Bell
Keep Liberty Beautiful
The Greatest American Cleanup is Keep America Beautiful’s Vision for Making America Look its Best for Our Nation’s 250th Birthday. Liberty County is doing its part by participating in local Great American Cleanups throughout the county.
This past week, four cities held GAC in their respective areas. Flemington, Allenhurst, Walthourville, and Midway did cleanups and had outstanding support. With the help of sponsors such as Tri-County Bonding Agency, Family Outdoor Movies & Party, Entertainment of GA, and Walthourville Meat Market, the first tri-city cleanup was conducted, and the city mayors are looking to collaborate on more initiatives together.
Keep Liberty Beautiful is deeply grateful for your unwavering support in preserving the beauty of our community. Your past efforts have not only made a significant difference but also set a high standard for future endeavors. Together, we have achieved a great deal, and we look forward to even greater successes in the future.
We need cleanups like the Great American Cleanup to keep litter off the streets and in our waterways. What goes on the surface will travel when it rains or when the wind blows. The ponds at Bryant Commons in Hinesville collect a significant amount of litter and debris that flows into them from city storm drains. It takes volunteers to keep the ponds free of cigarette butts, cups, bottles, cans, fast food trash, and other unsightly litter that people discard on our sidewalks and streets, ultimately ending up in city storm drains. All of these items contribute to a problem known as nonpoint source pollution, a persistent issue that requires ongoing attention.
Unfortunately, the most significant danger to our local waterways is these “nonpoint sources” (NPS), which are challenging to control. What are nonpoint sources of pollution? Nonpoint pollution develops primarily in our own homes and backyards, on our roads, in businesses, on farms, and in more densely populated areas.
NPS pollution is caused by rainfall or irrigation moving over and through the ground. As the water runoff moves, it picks up. It carries away natural and human-made pollutants, finally depositing them into creeks, lakes, rivers, wetlands, coastal waters, and even our underground drinking water sources. It is often called stormwater pollution. Those slight downpours of rain wash the pollution and debris into our groundwater and waterways.
These pollutants include: • Oil, grease, and toxic chemicals from urban runoff and energy production • Sediment from improperly managed construction sites, crop and forest lands, and eroding stream banks
• Salt from irrigation practices and acid drainage from abandoned mines
• Bacteria and nutrients from animals, pet wastes, and faulty septic systems
• and, of course, litter. According to the EPA, nonpoint source pollution remains the leading cause of water quality issues. This type of pollution, known to have detrimental effects on our drinking water, wildlife, and fisheries, is a problem that we can only solve together.
It’s a shared responsibility that requires a united effort from all of us. As urbanization continues, nonpoint pollution worsens unless we take collective action to change many of our harmful daily habits and seek proactive ways, such as our Adopt Liberty groups, to create positive change. We’re all in this together.
There are still numerous ways for you to be involved in creating positive changes in Liberty County. You can organize a cleanup in your neighborhood, help mark storm drains like the Hinesville Rotary Club, or join the Adopt Liberty Program. Keep Liberty Beautiful provides cleanup supplies, including garbage bags, safety vests, work gloves, and even litter grabbers, as well as water, for these cleanups and environmental projects. Your individual actions can make a significant difference; we encourage you to participate in these initiatives.
KLB Volunteer Appreciation 2025, A’ohe hana nulka: “No task is too big when done together,” is our way of thanking our volunteers for all their hard work. We invite you to our volunteer appreciation on May 28, 2025. Don’t forget to dress in your favorite tropical attire, because this year we are going to Hawaii! So, in the spirit of love, kindness, and appreciation... Thanks for being ‘Tiki- Rific volunteers. Please RSVP by May 23.
Event address: Stafford Pavilion Liberty County Rec Dept 609 Oglethorpe Hwy Hinesville, GA 31313 For more information, please get in touch with us at (912) 880-4888 or email us at klcb@libertycountyga. gov. With your help, we can find ways to keep our Liberty County Community a beautiful place to live.