Mountain Village Community Clean Up Day: September 10, 2023

Mountain Village hosts its annual Community Clean Up Day on Sunday, September 10, 2023.

This year’s Clean Up Day will be based out of Heritage Plaza in the Mountain Village Center.

“Per the Leave No Trace ethos, ‘There’s no substitute for nature. Together we can protect it from impacts like overuse, trash, and harming endangered wildlife.’” said Event Organizer Lauren Kirn, who is also the Town’s environmental efficiencies and grant coordinator.

“Mountain Village is not shielded from the effects of human impact and we need to do our best to ensure that we protect it and leave it as we found it, if not better,” Kirn added.

Volunteers are asked to arrive between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. to register, pick up trash bags and receive designated areas of where to clean up trash. There will be coffee and donuts during registration. The clean up itself will take place from 10 a.m. to noon.

Participants will be provided bags for trash and recycling and are encouraged to bring gloves, wear long pants and comfortable shoes.

After the clean up, hang out in Heritage Plaza between noon and 2 p.m. with a raffle and prizes for things like weirdest trash found and most trash collected.

The Clean Up Day celebration will include educational booths about local solid waste diversion and general environmental efforts in our region. Visitors and participants can learn from about regional waste reduction efforts from local waste hauler Bruin Waste Management, EcoAction Partners and San Miguel County.

“Education and engagement are undeniable components of behavior change,” Kirn said. “We are excited to expand Community Clean Up Day to include educational and information booths from Bruin Waste Management, EcoAction Partners, and San Miguel County to name a few.

“We not only want to pick up trash, but change behavior to where no trash exists to pick up in the first place,” she added.

For more information, please visit the town’s website.