Russell Springs Mayor Eddie Thomas said littering within the city and across the county has become a significant issue.
“People are throwing trash out everywhere,” Thomas said during Thursday’s city council meeting. “It’s awful.”
Thomas said he has spoken with Russell Springs Police Chief Tim Pierce and the police department will begin cracking down on those caught littering.
“Tim has told me there will be some citations written for littering, so if you throw anything out, you might see some blue lights behind you, so you’ve been warned,” Thomas said.
Thomas and Jeremy Coffey were recently joined by a group of men from SPARC Recovery Center in Russell Springs to pick up some of the litter in town, but the problem continues.
Council member Sherry Bottom-Daniel commended the work of the Bartrug family for their work picking up litter off Old Columbia Road. Bottom-Daniel said she was glad to see the family taking the initiative to help clean up the community and said they deserve recognition for what they do.
A seemingly noticeable increase in littering is far from a Russell Springs issue. The entire county has faced issues with what seems to be an increase in roadside litter, which could possibly be attributed to inmates from the Russell County Detention Center not currently being able to participate in roadside pickup at the time due to restrictions from the state and federal level. Jailer Bobby Dunbar has said he is working on the issue to be able to bring the inmates back out to pick up roadside litter.
A Clean Up Metcalfe campaign has been started in nearby Metcalfe County with volunteers picking up trash alongside roadways and Taylor County is working on a similar program.
