By Bonita Wilborn
According to Jackson County Commission Chairman, Tim Guffey, Jackson County has a terrible litter problem. Despite the many and varied efforts that have been made to motivate county citizens to help alleviate the problem, Commissioners think they have come upon a creative idea to help clean up the county.
At a Commission work session held on March 18, District II Commissioner Jason Venable brought the idea of a Trash Tournament to the attention of his fellow commissioners. “I think it would be neat to have a trash tournament, instead of a bass tournament,” said Venable.
Local businesses got on board with the Trash Tournament as sponsors of the event and a T-shirt that was designed specifically for the event. Business and individuals who donate $100 or more will have their logo or name printed on the shirt. All proceeds given regarding t-shirt sales and donations will be added to a charitable donations shush fund of sorts, pending distribution following the Big Trash Splash.
The Big Trash Splash will be held similarly as the ever popular area fishing tournaments where participants will bring their catches of the day (bags of trash) to the designated weigh-in location. Based on the amount of trash that has been gathered by the person or persons, the participant will be allocated a price-per-pound amount of the donation monies, that will, in turn, be donated to a chosen local charity.
The county’s shoreline and roadside have become littered with paper, cups, and just trash in general, which commissioners recognize as casting a negative light on the county. All that debris is also affecting the economic development of the county negatively. Another adverse effect is that trash along the roadside and water’s edge can discourage would-be citizens from choosing this area as a place where they’d like to move their families.
The inaugural “Big Trash Splash” is scheduled for Saturday, May 4, 2019, The Jackson County Commission would like for everyone to come out and support it while supporting the clean-up efforts of their county.
Guffey and the rest of the Commission members are hopeful that the Big Trash Splash will be successful. They look forward to holding it in different locations in the county throughout the year, to clean up the whole county, not just a few isolated areas.
The goal of the event is to help people see that throwing trash on the side of the road, near waterways, or anywhere else other than a garbage can is not a good practice. Let’s make Jackson County a place we can be proud of for years to come.
