~ Monroe County Municipal Waste Management Authority Supports Affiliate ~

(September 24, 2024) Keep Monroe County Beautiful has officially become a county affiliate of Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful. The affiliate will be housed within and operate as a program of the Monroe County Municipal Waste Management Authority.

To achieve this milestone, Keep Monroe County Beautiful successfully completed Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful’s comprehensive Community Assessment. This vital process gathered crucial data across six key areas: residents’ attitudes towards litter and community image, existing litter prevention programs, community and beautification leaders, current waste and recycling policies, past and ongoing community revitalization efforts, and active volunteer groups. The insights gained will be instrumental in shaping a local plan aimed at transforming attitudes and behaviors around litter, recycling, beautification, and related issues.

With this initiative, the Waste Authority has established the Litter & Solid Waste Advisory Committee. This committee will leverage local resources and leadership to implement programs and activities efficiently and cost-effectively. By aligning with the overarching goals and objectives of the organization, the committee will translate these into actionable programs that address the specific needs and priorities of the community.

The Waste Authority works closely with public, private and civic partners to support litter prevention and abatement through infrastructure, educational programs and community cleanups. Beautification and greening efforts through partnerships with township parks, Monroe County Conservation District, Pocono Mountains Visitors Bureau and various watershed associations, land trusts and environmental councils will be further enhanced.

“Every day we make choices that impact future generations. Let’s choose to be the best stewards of the Earth by adopting eco-friendly lifestyles while making sustainable choices. Reducing, reusing and recycling waste will help minimize harm to our environment.” said Mike Stettler, Executive Director of the Waste Authority.

The group’s strategic plan for the next three years focuses on enlisting individuals to be stewards of the environment, utilizing education and awareness as the first step to encouraging positive behaviors, establishing broad-based partnerships of public, private and civic community alliances to achieve sustainable community involvement and engaging volunteers to extend reach and multiply the impact of local initiatives that change individual behavior and leads to local community improvement.

Salena Borsuk, Integrated Solid Waste and Recycling Program Coordinator for Monroe County Municipal Waste Management Authority will serve as the coordinator and point person for the Keep Monroe County Beautiful affiliate programs. Borsuk can be reached at 570-643-6100 or sborsuk@thewasteauthority.com.

“Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful is delighted to congratulate and welcome Keep Monroe County Beautiful to our network. We extend our gratitude to the Monroe County Municipal Waste Management Authority for their support and recognition of the value our programs, tools, and resources bring to residents in maintaining clean and beautiful communities. We eagerly anticipate collaborating to enhance existing initiatives and warmly welcome Monroe County to our Affiliate Network,” said Shannon Reiter, President of Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful.

For more information about Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful’s local affiliates, visit keeppabeautiful.org and choose Affiliate Network. To inquire about starting an affiliate, contact Kylie McCutcheon at kmccutcheon@keeppabeautiful.org or 724-836-4121 x114.

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About Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful
Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful’s vision is a clean and beautiful Pennsylvania. Since 1990, Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful has worked with hundreds of thousands of volunteers across the state to pick up nearly 158 million pounds of trash from Pennsylvania’s roadways, waterways, greenways, vacant lots, forestlands and other community spaces. Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful’s core programming focuses on litter and illegal dump prevention, cleanup, community greening, and proper waste handling and sustainable practices. Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful works with many partnering organizations on the state and grassroots level to accomplish our goal of a clean and beautiful Pennsylvania. Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful is the state affiliate of Keep America Beautiful, Inc., the nation’s largest volunteer-based community action and education organization. To learn more about Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful, visit www.keeppabeautiful.org.

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