Debris pickup in Gulfport now full steam ahead

GULFPORT, Miss. (WLOX) - The City of Gulfport has already collected more than a million pounds of debris south of I-10. Crews started working in areas north of the interstate Monday.

To be specific, the south side total is 518 tons of debris, enough stuff to fill Gulfport’s Milner Stadium 12 stories high. They tell us they’ll continue these sweeps. Then in May, the debris enforcement period begins with penalties and fines for those who illegally dump items on the side of the road.

You might also remember One Clean Gulfport, the local nonprofit that’s looking at the mental aspects of illegal dumping, litter and blighted neighborhoods. They just came out with a survey for Gulfport residents on their views concerning litter.

“It’s so important because litter is a gateway crime. Every study has shown that there’s more vandalism and other types of crime, and it makes the residents more vulnerable because when the criminals see a lot of litter they think the residents just don’t care,” said Debra Hilgeman. “The survey we’re doing does cover everything about litter. It’s based on a Keep America Beautiful National litter study that was done a couple of years ago. It’s the same study that’s been used by cities and states across the country.”

Gulfport leaders said they’ll come back to the south side of I-10 to take care of any areas they might have missed during the initial cleanup period, which began during the first week of March.

Want more WLOX news in your inbox? Click here to subscribe to our newsletter.

Copyright 2023 WLOX. All rights reserved.