California removes a record 2.5 million cubic yards of litter from across the state
What you need to know: Since launching Clean California in July 2021, Caltrans and its partners have removed more than 2.5 million cubic yards of litter from roadsides and communities – enough litter to stretch from San Diego to Canada.
SACRAMENTO — Less than three years since launching a bold initiative to clean up and beautify roadsides and public spaces throughout the state, Governor Gavin Newsom today announced Clean California has helped remove more than 2.5 million cubic yards of litter – enough to cover nine lanes of Interstate 5 with an inch of trash from San Diego to the Canadian border. As part of Governor Newsom’s sweeping $1.2 billion multiyear effort, Caltrans and its partners have stepped up their litter collection efforts since July 2021, including conducting over 11,200 cleanups just this year.
Clean California has revitalized many of our neighborhoods and public spaces, creating cleaner streets and offering thousands of people a chance to earn an income while improving their communities. Californians are once again reclaiming their public spaces with a sense of pride, creating safer, cleaner, and more inviting neighborhoods for everyone.
Governor Gavin Newsom
Clean California has also partnered with civic organizations across the state to provide employment opportunities to 15,000 Californians, including those who were formerly incarcerated, on probation, or experiencing housing insecurity. Moving forward, Caltrans will retain close to 80 percent of these special purpose crews compared to the peak of Clean California, making them a continued part of the department’s revamped litter removal efforts.
“What started as a commitment from Governor Newsom three years ago has turned into a reality, with cleaner roadsides and communities up and down the state,” said California Transportation Secretary Toks Omishakin. “Clean California represents what can be accomplished when we all work together to improve our surroundings.”
This milestone represents a substantial increase compared to Caltrans’ previous trash collection efforts and can largely be attributed to Clean California, along with other Caltrans litter removal efforts. It underscores a continued effort to reinvigorate neighborhoods through litter removal and beautification projects as part of Clean California, which also has disposed of 12,000-plus mattresses and nearly 50,000 tires. The initiative has drawn more than 10,000 community clean-up volunteers to hundreds of events and helped encourage a cultural shift to keep our public spaces clean and litter-free.
“The sheer volume of trash collected by Clean California and Caltrans litter removal efforts would not be possible without the steadfast commitment from our maintenance crews and thousands of volunteers throughout the state who have made beautification a top priority,” said Caltrans Director Tony Tavares.
Last month, Governor Newsom announced a new geographic information system (GIS) mapping tool to spotlight hundreds of Clean California projects throughout the state. The GIS map offers users multilayered data that demonstrates the transformative impact of community improvements and infrastructure investments.
In Oakland and Bakersfield, Caltrans has intensified litter collection, graffiti removal and beautification efforts with 10-point Action Plans designed to complement Clean California and help maintain clean highway roadsides.
To learn more about Clean California, visit CleanCA.com.