Governor Unveils Statewide Anti-Litter Campaign

Governor Unveils Statewide Anti-Litter Campaign

“Litter. It Costs You” to Focus on Education, Enforcement and Eradication

ATLANTA, Ga. – Today Governor Sonny Perdue unveiled Georgia’s new statewide anti-litter campaign at the Litter Summit in downtown Atlanta. “Litter. It Costs You” was introduced as the new tag line for this innovative and coordinated attack on litter that encompasses a three-pronged approach: education, enforcement and eradication.

“Litter is ugly, it costs money to clean up and gives the impression that we are not proud of our communities. We need to make a commitment that we care about our how our state looks,” said Governor Sonny Perdue. “We are going to start early with Georgia’s youngest citizens. We’ll harness their enthusiasm to fight litter and encourage their parents and grandparents to be good examples, too.”

The goal of the statewide litter campaign is to create a long-term solution for reducing litter through increased public awareness, community involvement and personal responsibility. Governor Perdue began the two-day Governor’s Litter Summit by unveiling the campaign logo and tag line, along with two of its key communications components – a television advertisement and a campaign mascot, the “Brown Trasher,” designed to engage children of all ages.

The anti-litter campaign leverages the resources of state agencies, city and county governments, and volunteer organizations to engage the public and effect change.

The goal of the summit is to raise the level of awareness about littering and illegal dumping, to provide training for law enforcement officials, and showcase communities and organizations with successful anti-litter programs. The two-day summit includes presentations by many national experts, including a panel of litter professionals discussing new trends in litter abatement and prevention.

The campaign will take advantage of a new Web site, community toolkit, community challenges for youth and adults and classroom outreach, such as a contest to name the state litter mascot. This comprehensive approach to litter will also incorporate the efforts of volunteer organizations, city and county governments and state agencies from across Georgia.

Additional components of the campaign announced at the Governor’s Litter Summit will be implemented over the next year, including the Clean Community Challenge and the Youth Clean Community Challenge.

For more information, please visit www.litteritcostsyou.org.

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