Keeping Campbell Green

In conjunction with San Jose’s Great American Litter Pickup and in honor of , Campbell will host its ninth community cleanup on Saturday, from 8 a.m. to noon at

The benefit?

"This brings people together from different communities," says Campbell 0ffice specialist Diana Johnson.

Because the event is a collaborative effort between various cities in Santa Clara County, residents from Campbell's neighbors, like Los Gatos, Palo Alto and San Jose, come out.

"The event is aimed at a lot of awareness," Johnson says. "It does encompass cleanups; there's a small cleanup at a school, at the park and under a freeway overpass, but it makes the public aware of what happens if you don’t use the appropriate garbage and recycling containers. This is what happens."

The cleanup will focus on four locations:

• John D. Morgan Park
• The freeway on and off ramps at Camden and Highway 17
• Along the railroad tracks adjacent to Winchester Boulevard at Hacienda
• Some graffiti cleanup within the city

This year, an estimated 80-100 volunteers are expected to show up at the event.

"We have been very fortunate," she says. "Many are volunteers that come every year. Schools, churches, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts; we've even had past councilmen and former Mayor Dan Furtado participate in several events."

In 2010, 100 volunteers answered the call and went out to help clean up Campbell. At minimum wage of $8 per hour, this works out to about $3,200 worth of temporary labor in one day. Assuming each bag contained 20 pounds of litter:

• 29 bags of cans/plastics/glass and paper were collected = 580 pounds
• 52 bags of trash were collected = 1,040 pounds
• Total: 1,620 pounds were collected

Rain or shine, volunteers will be asked to meet at the park at 8 a.m., at which time they will sign in and then disperse into groups. An agenda and instructions on safety and debris removal will be discussed.

Gloves, vests and other tools will be distributed. Volunteers are encouraged to dress appropriately for the event. Refreshments will be provided in the morning, and the event will conclude with a lunch at noon.

Keep California Beautiful Inc. has been a sponsor of the event for the past eight years.

To sign up to volunteer, go here, or to learn more about the event, call Diana Johnson at the city of Campbell, 408-866-2749.