More than 960 Perdue associates, their family members and friends across 11 states removed 31 tons of trash and debris from streams, woods and roadways as part of the eighth annual Project Clean Stream, a company-wide effort to help protect the environment in the communities where associates live and work.
Perdue volunteers, who mobilized cleanups at 59 local sites, removed 62,483 pounds of trash. Their bounty included such items as tires, toys, mattresses, bottles, televisions, bicycles, paper products and much more. Clean-up were sites located in California, Delaware, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and Washington.
“Our associates’ participation says a lot about our company’s culture and commitment to environmental stewardship at Perdue,” said Jeff Smith, director of environmental services and Project Clean Stream coordinator. “For eight years, our associates, who put a great deal of time and energy into their work, have come out on a Saturday morning to participate in a project that benefits their community and helps protect the environment.”
In Monterey, Tennessee, 88 volunteers removed more than 21,000 pounds of trash from two locations to lead all volunteer teams and garnered the appreciation of the community. “On behalf of the Town of Monterey, thank you for having a clean up day,” said Monterey Mayor Bill Wiggins III. “Your commitment to the community in which you work is noticed and we in the offices of the Town of Monterey want to let you know how much we appreciate you.”
Ninety-five associates in Georgia harvested more than 13,300 pounds of trash from sites in Forsyth, Gainesville and Perry.
Project Clean Stream was launched in 2004 by the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland as a grass-roots effort to clean-up waterways and shorelines in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Perdue joined the volunteer project in 2008 with 30 volunteers. In 2011, Perdue expanded the Project Clean Stream concept across the company to encourage associates to organize similar clean-up efforts in their communities.
Al Todd, executive director of the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay, said, “We started Project Clean Stream as a program focused on building a strong commitment to personal environmental stewardship. When people get involved in protecting and restoring their local streams and rivers, they make a connection that lasts. Perdue shares this belief and that is one of the reasons that the Alliance has been working with Perdue for nearly 10 years. At the Alliance, we have a motto, “Together, we will get the job done.” That means all of us, business and non-profits, government and citizens working together. We are grateful for the great effort of Perdue associates on behalf of Project Clean Stream and the environment.”
“Project Clean Stream provides an exciting opportunity to engage associates in helping protect the environment in the communities where they live and work, while reinforcing our company’s commitment to being a good corporate citizen,” said Steve Schwalb, vice president of environmental sustainability at Perdue. “The combined strength of our associates’ efforts has made a tremendous impact in those communities.”
