NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Tennessee Department of Transportation said littering across the state decreased by around 12% since 2016.
They said they conducted a Visible Litter Study, which also found there are more than 88 million pieces of litter on roadways at any given time. TDOT established its Litter Grant program in 1983 to help local governments implement litter prevention programs, as well as educational programming.
This year marks the grant program's 40th anniversary. According to a release, counties still use the funding for initiatives like litter and tarp enforcement, cleanup and recycling events, litter prevention education campaigns and participation in the Nobody Trashes Tennessee litter prevention campaign.
The grant program also helps fund the Keep Tennessee Beautiful group, as well as its local affiliates.
They said the grant program helps remove an average of around 11,243 tons of litter per year. In 2022, they said around 28% of the total amount of litter across the state was recycled. They also said 3,480 illegal dumpsites were cleaned up. Since the program started, more than 435,529 tons of litter have been removed from roadways.
They said in 2022, the average cost of litter program through the program was around $14.40 per mile, while contracted litter pickup costs TDOT more than $500 per mile.
Around $5.5 million is allocated for the Litter Grant program.