Springfield is more beautiful than ever, thanks to the volunteers and households who took part in the 2024 Clean Green Springfield initiative.
Nearly 1,000 individuals registered to volunteer in one or more volunteer cleanup or beautification opportunities in April and May. Volunteer opportunities included one-time street and stream cleanups, beautification projects, Point of Pride Cleanup events and provided volunteer support for the scheduled Neighborhood Cleanups hosted by Community Partnership of the Ozarks.
This season, approximately 930 individuals followed up on their registration, completing one or more of their volunteer commitments. Assuming an average of 2.5 hours of volunteer work per participant, it’s estimated that Clean Green volunteers logged more than 2,325 volunteer hours through the spring initiative.
Clean Greeners collected approximately 865 bags of trash throughout the campaign, estimated at more than 10 tons of litter removed from Springfield streets, neighborhoods and waterways.
New in 2024, Clean Green Springfield hosted two “Dropoff Depot” disposal opportunities, helping an estimated 1,000 households clean up their homes and dispose of tires, mattresses and general trash and bulky items. 1,332 tires and 407 mattresses in total were collected for recycling. Clean Green also provided the opportunity to dispose of general trash and bulky items, filling more than 18 roll-off dumpsters totaling up to an estimated 72 tons of trash.
Why litter matters
Litter in our community gets washed into storm drains when it rains and ends up in our streams. Based on local stream assessments, it’s estimated that there are over 600,000 pieces of trash in Springfield streams, 60% of which is plastic. Cigarette butts are also a commonly littered item with an estimated 50,000 butts in local streams. Trash affects the use and enjoyment of waterways and trails for popular recreational activities and is a source of pollution that impacts water quality, aquatic life and animals.
Neat Neighborhoods Competition continues through Sept. 1
New to Clean Green in 2024 is the Neat Neighborhoods Competition, running through Sept. 1. Registered neighborhoods within each zone are competing against one another to cleanup and improve their neighborhoods, fostering a sense of friendly competition and camaraderie. The competition will award one neighborhood in each zone as a winner with a total of four winning neighborhoods each year.
The Hatch Foundation is donating $10,000 to each of the four winning neighborhoods. First-place winning neighborhoods in each zone will win $6,000, with second place winning $3,000 and third place winning $1,000.
The competition is divided into five categories, each contributing to a total possible score, with the score being a reflection of the collective efforts and achievements of participating neighborhoods. The categories cover a broad spectrum including community planning, public spaces, green spaces, streets, tidiness and more.
To get involved in the competition, connect with the Neat Neighborhoods coordinator for your neighborhood listed below:
Zone 1
Bisset: Pete Radecki, [email protected]
Heart of the Westside: Glenn Gohr, [email protected]
Westside: Sharon Brooks, [email protected]
Woodland Heights: Jan Hutcherson, [email protected]
Zone 3
Greater Parkcrest: Michael Brittain, [email protected]
Phelps Grove: Vicky Trippe, [email protected]
West Central: Rusty Worley, [email protected]
Zone 4
Bradford Park: Janet Wall, [email protected]
Brentwood: Brent Rinker, [email protected]
Seminole-Holland: William Cooper, [email protected]
