On Southeastern’s campus the Lions have been going green and keeping it clean since the new littering policy was implemented for the fall semester, but Southeastern is not the only one battling litterbugs.
Tangi Clean, an organization dedicated to monitoring and removing Tangipahoa’s litter and dilapidated properties in Tangipahoa parish is also waging war against litter. In just five years, Tangi Clean’s efforts have made a noticeable impact in the parish and even in the Tangipahoa River.
The key to Tangi Clean’s success is spreading awareness.
“I believe the litter problem has improved over the last 5 years,” said E.J. Forgotston, president of Tangi Clean. “Awareness has been a big part of Tangi Clean’s efforts.”
The federal and local government is responsible for keeping up with the maintenance of the roads and roadsides. If a violation occurs, the person responsible for the infraction is issued a citation. Tickets for littering violation begin at $100 and increase, depending on the severity of the violation.
“Ticketing is definitely effective”, said Forgotston. “We have to hit them in their pocketbooks. That’s the only way people listen.”
Last year a total of 24 littering tickets were issued by the Tangipahoa Parish Justice of the Peace.
According to the Hammond Daily Star, the Tangipahoa River, once on the state’s impaired rivers’ list, was removed from the list in 2009 due to the increased awareness of littering’s impact on the environment. Since then, the river has been noted as one of the cleanest rivers in the state even after pollution from a nearby dairy farm, which was immediately neutralized by efforts to keep the river clean.
“Hammond has won the Cleanest City Award for the last several years,” said Fortgotston. “Hammond is very aggressive and cooperative when it comes to litter abatement.”
Hammond was consecutively named the Cleanest City for the seventh year. The efforts of Tangi Clean keep Tangipahoa Parish on par with the demands of the parish.
“There are still lots of areas that need cleaning all the time,” said Forgotston.
Despite all the success Tangi Clean has received, there is still a lot of work to be done. Tangi Clean is looking for volunteers to help in the efforts to make Tangipahoa Parish a clean parish.
Tangi Clean meetings are held every Tuesday at 6 p.m. at the Tangipahoa Parish Convention and Visitors Bureau. Meetings for Tangi Clean are open to the public. Periodical clean up days are scheduled throughout the year. The next “trash day” is Saturday, Oct. 5 from 8 a.m. until 11 a.m. at the Tangipahoa Parish Convention and Visitors Bureau. Supplies for the cleanup will be distributed at the site and volunteers are encouraged.
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Tangi Clean organization aims to make whole parish cleaner
Shanell Sanders
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September 17, 2013
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