On Saturday, September 30th, WHSAD students and staff members partnered with community volunteers in Curb Your Litter NYC. Through this collaboration, students were able to experience firsthand the litter that too often covers our streets. Students came into the event with some knowledge of the litter problem that our city has, but the experience made the issue much more palpable. As observed by sophomore Antonio Perez, ” I was bewildered by the amount of Litter that is truly present in the streets. To explain the sheer massiveness of the amount of hidden litter behind cars and in alleyways would be impossible.” However, students were able to see that such dilemmas are not insurmountable if a group of concerned citizens works together. “When we were finished and returned to the park, it was so exciting. To pass by and see all of our hard work and notice the changes that we helped bring about was insane,” continued Perez.
Sophomore Antonio Perez learns firsthand the items that litter our community.
With experiences such as these, WHSAD will look to continue its impact on the local community and empower its students to be active residents working for their city’s well-being.
Below is sophomore Ariana Lowery’s account of the day.
On September 30th, a group of my peers, along with community volunteers, went to a local park to help clean up the community. We met at the park and were broken off into different groups. We all grabbed both clear and black garbage bags. After a brief explanation on how to recycle and how it can benefit our lives for the greater good, we set off to work. Ms. Lisa, my group leader, gave examples of what types of trash go in each bag and how to determine what type of trash we find. For example, glass goes with plastic, Styrofoam, and cardboard into the clear bag. Things such as paper, smaller forms of plastic like straws, and wrappers go into the black bag.
Each group consisted of around five people. We covered approximately eight blocks, an abandoned and heavily littered parking lot, and both sides of the BQE. Litter along this strip of highway exceeded my expectations. There was a countless amount of garbage that included metal tools, empty gas tanks, large cardboard boxes, and so much more. This experience really put into perspective how much waste people produce. We make things using harmful gasses, and then easily get rid of these things by just throwing them “away”. By simply placing our trash in designated bags, which are located almost everywhere we go, we can make our community a clean space.
Students pull out various pieces of refuse from a Greenpoint sidewalk.