EDITORIAL: Join us in cleaning our town

EDITORIAL Celebrate Earth Day by helping to clean up litter in South Brunswick.

   How many times have you driven down one of the many scenic back roads in South Brunswick, down Riva Avenue by Davidson Mill Pond Park, for example, or along Culver Road in Dayton, only to have your tranquility disrupted when your headlights reflected off discarded beer cans on the side of the road?
   What about all those coffee cups and candy wrappers that seem to be forever stuck in the brush and woods along Route 1 or New Road?
   Well, here’s your chance to do something about it.
   As it has done for more than 15 years to celebrate Earth Day, the township Department of Public Works is sponsoring a series of township cleanups that will help put a shine on South Brunswick roads. And public works needs your help.
   The department is looking for families, businesses, community groups and anyone else who is willing to put on their work clothes and get out and pick up the trash. Township Recycling Coordinator Nancy Paquette said volunteers will be asked to get out for only about an hour.
   As a carrot, your efforts will be rewarded not only with a cleaner looking town, but with a party on May 1 at Reichler Park, where T-shirts and hot dogs will be given out in advance of an Earth Day tree planting by the South Brunswick Shade Tree Commission.
   We’ve already committed — the staff of the South Brunswick Post will be cleaning up a section of Culver Road near our Dayton office later this month.
   And we encourage all of our readers to join us by calling Ms. Paquette, rolling up your sleeves and finding a stretch of road or parkland that has seemingly turned into a mini-junkyard.
   Last year alone, the cleanup netted more than 500 bags of garbage, which is more than just a drop in the bucket.
   And it is far more than just a nuisance or eyesore. Much of that trash could have made it into local streams and aquifers, the same places from which we get our drinking water. And the stuff that doesn’t make it into our water can be a hazard in other ways. After all, what animals would want broken glass, aluminum cans, chewed gum or any number of other disgusting or dangerous debris littering the places they make their nests and find their food.
   We encourage anyone with a yen for all things green — and all who care about the health and well-being of South Brunswick and its residents — to sign up.
   We know it won’t be a pleasant task — there are few things more disgusting than picking up someone else’s garbage.
   But when it comes to town pride and a healthy environment, there are few things that are more important.
   Residents who want to participate should sign up with Ms. Paquette beforehand. She can be reached at (732) 329-4000, ext. 7274.