Government is looking at more highway cleanups in the near future after spending about $80,000 on the Outer Ring Road on Sunday.
Minister Bernard Davis says that while they’re always looking for areas to clean up, the Outer Ring Road near Logy Bay was a specific area of interest, due to its proximity to the landfill.
Davis says there are many volunteer groups that clean up areas around the city on a regular basis; groups like Clean St. John’s do great work and they would’ve been involved in this cleanup if it weren’t for the pandemic.
Davis says using government employees was not significantly more expensive than using volunteers. He says the cost is mostly what it takes to close the road, with a similar event partnered with Clean St. John’s costing $65,000.
Earlier Story
The cleanup of the Outer Ring Road yesterday cost taxpayers about $80,000.
Environment and Climate Change Minister Bernard Davis says around 90 cubic metres of garbage were collected on the Outer Ring Road.
About 130 government employees participated and more than six full dump truck loads of garbage were collected. Minister Davis attributes most of the garbage to unsecured loads. Drinking cups, old signs, and even car parts were removed from the roadway.
The minister had one clear message after the cleanup: “We can do better.”
During yesterday's cleanup of the Outer Ring Road, this visitor stopped by to check out the activity.
The moose was spotted by a @TI_GovNL employee between Alandale Road and Team Gushue Highway. #nltraffic pic.twitter.com/SWVk2e5hDR
— Transportation and Infrastructure NL (@TI_GovNL) May 10, 2021