Great news for Keep Euclid Beautiful

 

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Keep Euclid Beautiful
Email: Keepeuclidbeautiful@cityofeuclid.com
Website:
www.cityofeuclid.com/residents/keepeuclidbeautiful

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Keep Euclid Beautiful Receives Cigarette Litter Prevention Program Grant from

Keep America Beautiful

Euclid, Ohio (3/27/18) – Keep America Beautiful, the nation’s iconic community improvement nonprofit organization, today announced that Keep Euclid Beautiful will receive a Cigarette Litter Prevention Program Grant of $2500.00 to combat cigarette litter in Euclid.

Keep Euclid Beautiful is one of 42 organizations to receive grant funding through the 2018 Cigarette Litter Prevention Program. The 2017 Cigarette Litter Prevention Program grant funding totaled $295,000. The Cigarette Litter Prevention Program, now in its 16th year, is the nation’s largest program aimed at reducing cigarette litter. Throughout its history, the program has helped reduce cigarette litter in the communities in which it has been implemented by an average of 50 percent.

Receptacles for cigarette butts, filters and tips will be placed at four RTA bus stop locations along with “No Littering” signs in order to decrease the amount of cigarette litter around these locations.  These locations are spread throughout the city.  If this pilot program is successful, Keep Euclid Beautiful plans on applying for additional funds in 2019 in order to purchase more receptacles for other RTA bus stop locations.

It’s critical to prevent the large amount of cigarette butts and plastic tips from washing into our sewer drains.  It directly impacts our Waste Water Treatments plants and the very health of our lake depends on eliminating this type of litter said Linda Beck.

“The grant recipients are charged with moving the program forward to help educate and inspire smokers to do the right thing,” said Helen Lowman, Keep America Beautiful president and CEO. “The new marketing assets, which any community can localize and use, will enable affiliates, local governments, and other community groups to teach adult smokers about the negative impacts related to littering and the role they can play in improving their community.”

Since its establishment over 16 years ago, the Cigarette Litter Prevention Program has consistently cut cigarette butt litter by approximately half based on local measurements taken in the first four months to six months after program implementation.  Survey results also demonstrate that as communities continue to implement and monitor the program those reductions are sustained or even increased over time. Keep America Beautiful has distributed over $3 million in grant funding to support local implementation of the program in more than 1,700 communities nationwide.

Last year, Cigarette Litter Prevention Program grants provided by Keep America Beautiful funded implementations across the country in a variety of settings including downtowns, roadways, beaches, parks, marinas, colleges/universities, tourist locations, and at special event locations. In addition, Keep America Beautiful piloted a new type of ash receptacle in partnership with UK-based Hubbub, known as the Ballot Bin, to fight litter. The bins were found to be successful forms of behavior change with some pilot sites showing as much as 83% reduction in cigarette litter.

To address cigarette butt litter, Keep America Beautiful’s Cigarette Litter Prevention Program advocates that communities integrate four proven approaches:

  • Encourage enforcement of litter laws, including cigarette litter;
  • Raise awareness about the issue using public service messages;
  • Place ash receptacles at transition points such as entrances to public buildings; and
  • Distribute pocket or portable ashtrays to adult smokers.

The Cigarette Litter Prevention Program is supported by funding from Philip Morris USA, an Altria company; RAI Services Company; and the Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company.

Keep Euclid Beautiful is an official affiliate of Keep America Beautiful.

About Keep America Beautiful
Keep America Beautiful, the nation’s iconic community improvement nonprofit organization, inspires and educates people to take action every day to improve and beautify their community environment. Celebrating its 65th Anniversary in 2018, Keep America Beautiful strives to End Littering, Improve Recycling and Beautify America’s Communities. We believe everyone has a right to live in a clean, green and beautiful community, and shares a responsibility to contribute to that vision. 

Behavior change – steeped in education, research and behavioral science – is the cornerstone of Keep America Beautiful. We empower generations of community and environmental stewards with volunteer programs, hands-on experiences, educational curricula, practical advice and other resources. The organization is driven by the work and passion of more than 600 Keep America Beautiful affiliates, millions of volunteers, and the collaborative support of corporate partners, social and civic service organizations, academia, municipalities, elected officials, and individuals. Join us on FacebookInstagram, Twitter and YouTube.

 

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Linda Beck

Secretary to the Mayor's Office, Chairperson for Keep Euclid Beautiful, Member of Keep Euclid Beautiful Team

Read More on Community
Volume 9, Issue 4, Posted 3:19 PM, 04.04.2018