The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) held a statewide Litter Removal Day and Enforcement Day on Thursday, April 20, 2017, to pick up litter, trash and debris along the state highway system and to educate the public about this costly issue.
Caltrans District 10 employees picked up 2,460 bags of litter, trash and debris in its eight counties – Alpine, Amador, Calaveras, Mariposa, Merced, San Joaquin, Stanislaus and Tuolumne.
1,454 bags of litter, trash and debris were picked up in San Joaquin County at the following locations:
- State Route 99 (SR-99) Lodi overcrossing to Turner Road in Lodi
- SR-12/SR-99 junction to SR-88 junction in Lodi
- Interstate 5 from El Dorado Street to Charter Way in Stockton
Last year, Caltrans spent $67 million to remove litter, trash and debris throughout the State Highway System, collecting enough litter to fill almost 9,000 garbage trucks. Parked end-to-end, those trucks would stretch more than 50 miles.
Caltrans picks up litter year-round and you have an opportunity to do your part by participating in our Adopt-A-Highway program. For more information on the Adopt-A-Highway Program, please visit www.adopt-a-highway.dot.ca.gov or call Kathy Cockayne, District 10 Adopt-A-Highway Coordinator, at (209) 948-7462.
The best anti-litter campaign is to ensure trash never makes it onto the highways in the first place. Caltrans encourages you to:
- Carry a litter bag in your automobile and always dispose of trash properly;
- Never discard cigarette or cigar refuse improperly;
- Always cover and properly secure loads of trucks and pick-ups.
With everyone doing their part we can keep California clean for today and the future.
In addition to the economic costs, litter presents a wide range of serious threats to the ecosystem and human health: Wildlife suffers from plastics in the environment; roadside vegetation is damaged by large debris; fires are started from burning cigarettes and threaten human health; harmful chemicals and biohazards cause a serious threat to human health; litter clogs roadway drainage systems and can lead to wet-weather highway flooding, congestion, and accidents. Litter aids in the spread of disease.