Citizens clean up trash along Highway 20

Local citizens are taking it upon themselves this Earth Day to clean up trash along Highway 20.

“It’s just disgusting. I’ve never seen it this bad here,” said Sicily Clark, who organized the cleanup.

Clark knew she had to do something after seeing all of the trash along Highway 20. She found out prisoners and other groups weren’t picking it up, so she rallied people together to clean it up themselves.

“Every one of us is busy,” she said. “We all have things going, but if we just each contribute 30 minutes, 45 minutes, it’s amazing how much trash can be picked up.”

Monday was the fourth time in two weeks she and others were out on the highway picking up trash. She said they collected 55 bags on their first day and had 135 bags after the third day. They have had nearly 100 volunteers over the four days. The volunteers cover a wide range of ages and are all on a mission to make the highway cleaner.

“I think it’s good to clean up the roads so we can stop littering because it’s not a good thing when all the trash is on the road,” said Dax Blaser, one of the volunteers. “It doesn’t look good for any visitors or anyone who lives here.”

Clark is hoping to raise awareness about picking up trash from the highways and keeping Idaho clean for its citizens and visitors for years to come.

“We all have pride in our community,” she said. “We all love Idaho. We love what it offers as far as outdoor opportunities and the land and I don’t feel like we’re maybe taking care of it the way that we should.”

If you would like to get a group together to pick up trash on the highway, you can visit whichever Idaho Transportation Department office is closest to you and check out vests, trash bags and signs.