One hour a week makes a huge difference, and volunteers are always welcome every Friday morning, when teams clean up a designated area of the island.

The volunteer cleanup on Friday the 13th yielded scary results. Last week’s efforts focused on the mangrove area behind Denny’s in the Overseas Market. Sixteen volunteers collected 192 pounds of trash, 15 pounds of recyclables and two gallons of cigarette butts.  The following day, on May 14, the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter MOHAWK performed their monthly Adopt-a-Spot cleanup, collecting 39 pounds of trash and recycling along Palm Avenue.

A troubling number of plastic bags was included in the Friday morning haul. Please remember your reusable bags when shopping so we can keep the plastic off the streets, parking lots and most importantly out of the water. 

The city of Key West and its residents ask everyone to do their part to help keep Key West beautiful. Simple steps like making sure you bag your trash before putting it in your Waste Management trash cans or Dumpsters, and making sure the lids on Dumpsters are closed will keep a lot of trash from blowing into the streets. 

Please pick up around your home or apartment complex. Every piece of trash picked up is one less that may end up in the ocean that surrounds and sustains our island community. It is not just the large items you can see easily when you are walking, but the smaller items such as bottle caps and cigarette butts that are collected by the volunteers that make the biggest difference. 

All are invited to join the Friday morning cleanups from 8 to 9 a.m. Parking is provided and all volunteers receive a parking pass when needed for metered or residential parking spots. See the calendar here for scheduled cleanup locations in May. 

Call Dorian Patton at City Hall with any questions at 305-809-3782.

May Cleanups, 8 to 9 a.m. Fridays

May 20: Caroline & Margaret streets, meet at the lot across from Harpoon Harry’s.

May 27: Duval and South streets, meet at Duval Pocket Park near Southernmost Mansion

— Dorian Patton, City of Key West

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