Deptford will sponsor an Earth Day cleanup on Saturday, April 22, to coincide with the national holiday, help keep the community clean and better protect the environment.
Volunteers can register at the municipal building the day of the event at 8 a.m. Work will include cleanup of some parks around town, such as Fasola and Veterans.
For Mayor Paul Medany, helping to protect the environment is a large and worthy undertaking.
“We have to protect our environment,” he said. “If we don’t, then the litter could end up in a storm drain, which then ends up in a creek, river or something like that, which could then end up in our drinking water.
“That’s what Earth Day is really about, helping to protect our communities by keeping the environment clean.”
The cleanup will include picking up litter and raking any leftover fall leaves. Supplies will be provided, and participants will also receive a free T-shirt. The effort will go on until about 11 a.m., as volunteers do their thing with help from township council.
“It’s a community program that a lot of people do,” Medany explained. “Last year, we had around 100 people when we went to Veterans Park in Oak Valley. We even had people bring their kids with them to help out.”
Though the cleanup is its own event, Medany welcomes continued help from the community outside of Earth Day. The township also has its own litter patrol program.
The Earth Day cleanup event is also sponsored by the township’s Public Works (DPW), the Green Team environmental program, New Jersey Clean Communities and the Deptford Environmental Commission.
Register for the event by calling Deptford Parks and Recreation at (856) 845-0804 or emailing them at deptfordparksandrec@deptford-nj.org.
