The deadline has been extended for a survey asking residents of Thomas County, Georgia their opinion of both the litter and the cost of litter cleanup for the area. The survey’s authors want to know how residents feel they’ll get the best bang for their garbage-collecting buck.
“So, how often do they litter? What are they most likely to litter? The circumstances like if it’s raining, or somebody else dropped it, would they be willing to pick it up? On the solid waste, we’re wanting to know how they use the services? Are they feeling comfortable with the sites now? And, so, trying to find out if the services are what they’re expecting for what they’re paying or would they like to see some changes,” said Pam Lister.
Lister is the Executive Director of Keep Thomas County Beautiful, a group aiming to do just what the name says. But she says there’s a lot of litter in several areas of the county, and she hopes surveying residents will show how much of a growing problem it is.
“There are certain areas, like the gateways, coming in and out of the community that have a higher instance. We’ve also found that roadsides that are probably a mile and a half away from fast food stores and convenience stores, as you’re turning off the main road, those types of intersections tend to be littered as well,” she added.
The questionnaire also weighs residents’ opinions of the cleanup fee, which Lister says is costing the county a lot of money every year.
“I think we figured it was around 120,000 a year just for clean up, and that does not include the businesses. That doesn’t include the volunteers that clean up. That’s just the government cost of keeping our roadsides clean.”
The original deadline to complete the survey was last Friday, but it’s since been extended to September 13th. At the end of the survey, Valdosta State University researchers will compile the data and the findings will be reported to the Thomas County Commissioners. For more information on the survey, visit Keep Thomas County Beautiful's website.
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