MARCH 30, 2009 – WAYLAND, MA – Cleaning up litter along roads, around ball fields and other public areas has been the mission of two local men for the last four years. Cliff Kolovson and Chris DeVany are hoping to rally even more people to remove litter around town this year on Saturday, April 18th.

As they did last year, the organizers are working with the Town Landfill staff to place collection dumpsters at schools around town, and are hoping to have a local retailer provide some food and rallying point.

“Roadside cleanup is best done in the early spring before the grass starts to grow and trees leaf out hiding much of the litter,” says Kolovson. “Now’s the time to get it,” he adds.

He hopes lots of people will turn out this year to collect litter on roadways, town fields and parks, trails and other public areas. High school students can receive community service credit for hours worked, and everyone gets to enjoy a cleaner town. “We need people just to give us a little time and energy to walk, bend over and pick up the trash that others have rudely or carelessly discarded,” Kolovson says.

Kolovson, of Garden Path in the Happy Hollow corner of town, and compatriot DeVany of Moore Road on the north side of Wayland have worked for four years to sponsor a springtime cleanup effort. They are among many bicycle riders and runners in town who see the trash that collects just off the roadways as they cycle and run. Last year, more than 300 people signed a log that they helped clean up around town. A huge amount of trash (including a waterlogged couch, several tires and old grills) was collected and properly disposed of.

Kolovson produces a small Web site (http://cleanup.pointed.com/) with photos of the cleanup and reports areas that need help. This year he urges ANYONE to collect trash ANYTIME during April. Take a photo and he’ll add it to the site…. You can even call him to come take a photo of large collections, and/or for help with any clean up issues.

The two organizers hope walkers will take trash bags with them on their daily route and pick up litter, particularly plastic. Kolovson has several dozen bags for the purpose left over from past Wayland groups that have run clean ups… he’ll be glad to see them put to use.

Places that seem to collect the most trash are those wooded open spaces between homes, or along undeveloped areas and along wetlands. Clearly, there is ample evidence of people dumping cases of beer cans (with the cardboard cases), and there are just tons of coffee cups, fast-food wrappings, water bottles… and there is no shortage of large items too!

The roadways are most obvious as people just toss stuff from cars. But every ball field and parking lot has plenty of trash around the perimeters. Especially onerous are plastic bags that blow and get caught in trees and bushes. Please snare these and recycle them.

Volunteers should contact either organizer right away by phone or email. Kolovson can be reached at 508-655-9696 or via email; and DeVany can be reached at 508-358-8070 or via email.

Hot spots include:

•    Rte 27 Center to Sudbury Line
•    River Road and Water Row
•    Rice Road end to end, particularly in middle near Hamlin Woods
•    Old CT Path from Rte. 20 to Framingham line
•    Pelham Island Road from Center to Sudbury Line
•    Stonebridge from 126 to Sudbury Line
•    Main Street from town line or Rte. 30 to School St
•    Cochituate Road from School St to Center
•    Plain Road particularly at head off Rte. 20
•    Rte. 20 near the West end, between Russell’s and the town line
•    Rte. 30 in many spots, particularly at the East end