Phoenix-area mayors to talk trash to prevent freeway litter

PHOENIX — Some unsuspecting customers may get a chance to meet Phoenix-area mayors and talk about trash at several Whataburger drive-thru windows on Friday.

According to a press release, mayors from Phoenix, Tempe, Scottsdale, Glendale and Goodyear have teamed up with the burger chain to talk about the campaign Don’t Trash Arizona, reminding drivers to be responsible with their trash.

The mayors will take shifts throughout the day in their respective cities to inform drivers about harmful effects and prevention of freeway litter.

“It’s always so much fun getting together with Arizona’s mayors to support an important cause, like keeping our neighborhoods clean,”  Whataburger director of operations Delson Montes said in the release.

Tempe’s Mayor Mark Mitchell shared a tweet of him and Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton giving a talk about the trash campaign and how to keep Arizona clean last month.

Thanks for visiting #Tempe @MayorStanton to talk about Keeping #Arizona clean! #DontTrashAZ @ArizonaDOT @ArizonaTourism pic.twitter.com/KjLKXfaboa

— Mayor Mark Mitchell (@AZMayorMitchell) March 21, 2017

The Don’t Trash Arizona program was launched in 2006 under the direction of the Maricopa Association Governments in cooperation with the Arizona Department of Transportation.

The program’s website reports 51.2 billion pieces of litter are left on roadways in the United States and that cigarette butts, Styrofoam cups, paper bags and more are some of its main problems.

Don’t Trash Arizona also said that ADOT crews picked up more than 9,000 bags of litter each month on Valley freeways, which adds up to about 1.2 million pounds of trash each year.