Earth Day Clean-Up Day: Safety, Sorting and What to Do With What You Find

Earth Day, celebrated on April 22 since 1970, is one of the busiest volunteer days of the year. Across New England, neighbors fan out into parks, along riverbanks, beside highways and around schools with bags and gloves in hand. A clean-up is one of the most visible and satisfying ways to care for a shared place.

Planning a clean-up takes weeks, but the day itself is where things can go well or badly. This guide focuses on the day of the event: setting up, keeping volunteers safe, sorting what you collect and wrapping up properly. It assumes you have already chosen a site, coordinated with the property owner and arranged for collected materials to be picked up.

Arrive Early and Set Up a Check-In Table

Plan to arrive at least 30 minutes before volunteers. Set up a visible check-in table with:

• A sign-in sheet with names and emergency contact numbers
• Gloves in several sizes
• Trash bags and, if you are sorting, separate bags or bins for recycling
• Litter grabbers, buckets and rakes
• A first aid kit
• Hand sanitizer and water
• A map of the area with zones marked
• Sunscreen and insect repellent, if appropriate

Have a designated team lead and at least one or two helpers who can answer questions and float between groups.

Hold a Short Safety Huddle

Before anyone heads out, gather everyone for a five-minute safety talk. Cover these points clearly:

1. Wear gloves at all times when picking up litter.
2. Do not touch sharp or hazardous items. This includes needles, syringes, broken glass, chemical containers, batteries and anything that looks unusual. Mark the spot and tell a team lead, who will follow the plan for reporting or safe disposal.
3. Stay out of traffic, off highway shoulders and away from active roadways unless you have specific permission and safety gear.
4. Stay out of the water and off steep, slippery banks.
5. Lift with care. Do not try to move heavy items like tires, furniture or appliances alone. Flag them for the team lead.
6. Watch for wildlife, nesting birds, poison ivy and ticks.
7. Work in pairs or groups, especially kids, who should always be with an adult.
8. Know where the first aid kit is and who to tell if someone gets hurt.

End the huddle by stating the finish time and the meeting spot.

Assign Zones and Teams

Breaking the site into zones keeps people spread out and makes sure every area gets covered. Assign each team a zone, a team leader and a set of supplies. Good zone assignments include:

• Easy, flat areas for young children and anyone with mobility limits
• Paths and edges for general volunteers
• Harder-to-reach spots for experienced adults, if safe

Give each team a phone number to call or text if they find something they should not handle.

Sort as You Go

Sorting what you collect helps keep recyclables out of the landfill and gives you a better picture of what is polluting the area. Keep it simple:

• Trash: food wrappers, cigarette butts, plastic bags, foam and mixed materials.
• Recycling: clean bottles, cans and other items your local program accepts. Muddy or food-covered items may need to go in trash.
• Returnable containers: in Massachusetts and some other New England states, many beverage containers carry a deposit. Some groups set these aside separately.
• Special items: tires, electronics, batteries, paint cans and metal scrap should be kept separate for proper handling.

Check with your local public works department or the property owner ahead of time about what can be recycled from a clean-up, since dirty materials are not always accepted.

Keep a Tally

Counting what you collect can make a clean-up more meaningful and help prevent future litter. Assign one person per team to track:

• Number of bags of trash and recycling
• Common items found, such as bottles, cans, wrappers or cigarette butts
• Unusual or large items
• Locations where litter seems to collect

Share the results with the property owner or city. Patterns, like a lot of litter near a bus stop without a trash can, can point to solutions.

Take Care of Volunteers

A happy volunteer is a returning volunteer. During the event:

• Remind people to drink water and take breaks.
• Check on kids and anyone working alone.
• Keep the event to about two to three hours.
• Take a few photos to share, with permission.

Wrap Up Properly

When time is up, gather everyone at the meeting spot:

1. Collect all supplies, including borrowed tools and leftover bags.
2. Stack filled bags in the agreed-upon pickup location, neatly and safely, away from walkways.
3. Make sure flagged hazardous items have been reported or handled according to plan.
4. Have everyone wash or sanitize their hands.
5. Count bags and record totals.
6. Take a group photo.
7. Thank everyone, and share when and where the next event will be.

Follow Up

Within a few days, send a thank-you message to volunteers with the results: bags collected, notable finds and photos. Thank the property owner and public works staff who arranged pickup. Report any problems you noticed, like broken trash cans or illegal dumping sites, through 311 or the appropriate department. A well-run clean-up does more than remove litter for a day. It builds a habit of care that lasts long after Earth Day.