By Mary Ellen Zangara, Special Writer
The fourth annual Clean Community Day, sponsored by the borough, will be held Saturday, March 31.
Groups have been invited to help beautify the community. Letters asking for support went out to Boy Scout Troop 193, Alexander Batcho Intermediate School, Sacred Heart and Christ the King youth groups, Manville High School clubs and sports teams, fire departments and the Rescue Squad, VFW and American Legion.
Phillip Petrone, director of the Public Works Department, attended a workshop in Toms River a few years ago and brought the Clean Community Day idea back to Manville.
”Over the years, we have gotten good participation,” he said. “This is just a time that we can get people together and make our town shine. This year, it has been Mayor (Angelo) Corradino’s initiative to clean up the town. This will be part of his request.”
Usually, the cleanup is held at the end of April, but Mr. Petrone decided to schedule an earlier date.
”We wanted to get out a little earlier in the year,” he said. “The grass is green and, in high grass, a lot of the debris is not noticeable. So we are trying to get out there before the grass starts growing.”
The day will begin with registration between 7 and 7:30 a.m. for walk-ins (8 a.m. for the groups already registered) and a light breakfast at North End Firehouse on the corner of North 8th Avenue and Louis Street. After breakfast, the volunteers will be transported to various locations and parks in town to start their work with chaperones provided by Mr. Petrone. The event is expected to end around 11 a.m.
Mr. Petrone is limiting the cleanup to ages 12 and older. Permission forms must be signed by those under age 18.
Even if people cannot stay the whole day, Mr. Petrone everyone to give whatever time they can. He will not turn anyone away, he said.
The Clean Communities program is managed by the state Department of Environmental Protection, Department of Treasury and Clean Communities Council. It’s supported by local governments, businesses, community organizations, schools and individuals who work together to keep New Jersey clean.
The Clean Communities Act, passed first in 1986 and later in 2002, places a user-fee on manufacturers, wholesalers and distributors who may produce litter-generating products. The user-fee, collected by the Department of Treasury and disbursed by the Department of Environment Protection, generates about $14 million each year.
About $4 million is placed in the state recycling fund and disbursed to municipalities in the form of recycling tonnage grants.
For information contact Mr. Petrone at the Public Works Department at 725-5515, ext. 106, or Administrative Assistant Violet Hall at ext. 100. If interested in helping, just come to the firehouse Saturday morning.

