Green Up Day is Saturday

Vermont’s Green Up Day takes place this Saturday, May 5 across the state. This is a great opportunity to clean up our communities while teaching our children a lesson in civic duty.

This afternoon Vermont Edition spoke with Melinda Vieux, president of the non-profit Green Up Vermont about the upcoming event. She said that in addition to the normal clean up activities, many Vermonters will be assisting in the continuation of the Irene clean up. Although the hurricane destroyed many parts of Vermont almost a year ago, many areas are still covered in debris. You can find information on local events at Green Up Vermont and Irene clean-up events  at VT Strong.

If you cannot participate in your town’s official activities on Saturday, contact your Green Up coordinator to find out where you can get your green bags and have your own clean up! When removing litter, separate recyclables from trash. Other tips include:

• Wear long sleeves, pants, comfortable shoes and a hat to protect yourself from the sun, ticks and underbrush
• Bring your own work gloves
• Fill a water bottle to keep hydrated while you are outside
• Consider bringing small hand-tools to help dig up buried trash
• Have hand-sanitizer and/or wipes available to clean hands
• Check yourself and your kids for ticks once you are done cleaning up (more information on ticks can be found at the VT Department of Health)

Green Up Vermont also offers activities for kids on their website including an activity book that can be downloaded.

See you out there!

Naptime means playtime for NEK mom Aimee Alexander, whose creative outlet is writing about all things mom-related over at Mama’s Recess including children’s health advocacy, education, raising kids in rural America, and the occasional project or recipe. You can also find her on Facebook and Pinterest!