Cumberland County Solid Waste is teaming up with the City of Fayetteville and the nonprofit Sustainable Sandhills to launch an anti-litter campaign called 5 for Friday. The program formally launches on Feb. 26.
The campaign’s goal is to encourage businesses, schools, community groups and individuals to reverse litter by having people pick up five pieces of trash and recyclable materials every Friday.
“If 5,000 people picked up five pieces of litter every week, Cumberland County would reduce its litter footprint by 1.3 million pieces of litter,” said Cumberland County Solid Waste Management Director Amanda Bader.
County and City residents are invited to sign the 5 for Friday pledge online at 5forfriday.org. As the campaign grows, you may see 5 for Friday decals and posters on windows or in spaces throughout Fayetteville and Cumberland County.
The mascot, Stan the Can (photo below), will appear in social media videos and at events to promote this campaign.
“We encourage residents to post their litter pickups on social media and use the hashtags #5forFriday and #StantheCan to help spread awareness of the campaign,” said Sustainable Sandhills Sustainability Program Manager for Waste Management Katrin Franz.
In Cumberland County:
- Solid Waste picked up 84 tons of litter and dumped waste in 2020.
- Litter pickup along roadways is managed by NCDOT. There are 2,900 travel lane miles countywide.
- If 25% of the county’s population picked up 5 pieces of trash on Fridays, it would equal 21 million pieces of litter removed in communities countywide.
In Fayetteville:
- Litter crews pick up more than two tons of litter each week.
- Much of the trash you see on the ground is blown there and not thrown.
- Crews clean along major roads each week, but by the next week, more litter appears in the same areas.
“Please bag trash in your vehicle and put it inside a trash can. The more residents and businesses help, the cleaner our community will be, we are all in this together,” said Fayetteville Assistant Public Services Director Daniel Edwards.
