Key West Ploggers: A Tale of Community Impact and Environmental Stewardship

Volunteers Roberta DePiero and Brian Fields gave a presentation to the City Commission last week, updating the amazing achievements of the weekly volunteer “ploggers” who gather in a new spot every Friday morning to pick up trash for an hour.

Brian Fields started the plogging program more than seven years ago after participating in Class 30 of the Key West Ambassadors Academy. Mayor Teri Johnston embraced the program within her Keep Key West Beautiful initiative, and the rest is history.

“Key West has set an example,” said Fields. “People spend time here and take the program back to their own cities and towns. They come to here visit and they help keep Key West clean.”

Over the past year, the ploggers have found different business sponsors who provide snacks and beverages for the volunteers.

The group presented the commission with a brief video, then the City of Key West surprised the group with a plaque commending the achievements of the volunteers in 2023. The plaque commemorates 1,765 volunteers, 9,242 pounds of trash picked up, 1,097 pounds of recycling reclaimed, and 171 gallons of cigarette butts, which get sent to a company called TetraCycle to be recycled into artificial wood for decking.

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