(PennWatch) The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation partnered with the Pennsylvania State Police and Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful to encourage the public to join the effort to be litter-free.

Litter in the Commonwealth continues to be a major problem and casts Pennsylvania in a poor light to residents, visitors, and businesses. PennDOT crews responsible for litter pickup throughout the year are also responsible for responding to winter weather emergencies, flooding, landslides, patching potholes, and other planned maintenance activities on state roadways.

“The true solution to the immense litter problem in Pennsylvania is simply for people to not litter. We will continue with education efforts and media campaigns. We plead that people make an effort to not only clean up litter, but make a commitment to not litter, and to encourage others to do the same. Everyone can do their part to keep Pennsylvania beautiful by not littering,” said District 12 Executive Rachel Duda.

Annually, PennDOT spends upwards of $14 million per year on litter control, prevention, and remediation programs on the 40,000+ miles of state-maintained highways. PennDOT District 12, which includes Fayette, Greene, Washington, and Westmoreland counties, spent over $873,000 last year on litter cleanup efforts. Unfortunately, this takes valuable resources away from other very important efforts related to maintaining our roads and bridges.

According to the Pennsylvania Litter Research Study submitted in 2020,the most common items found are cigarette butts (37 percent) and plastics (30 percent), with plastic film and beverage containers most prevalent. Over 40 million beverage containers and fast-food products are littered on Pennsylvania roadways. Motorists and pedestrians are the leading sources of litter, followed by improperly secured truck loads.

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Learn about how you can become involved through KPB’s Pick Up PA program