Participants during in the 2019 Friends of Acadia Roadside Cleanup. Photo Credit: Julia Walker Thomas/Friends of Acadia

BAR HARBOR — After a two-year hiatus due to the COVID pandemic, Friends of Acadia is excited to host its 21stAnnual Earth Day Roadside Clean-Up on Saturday, April 30, 2022, from 8:30-11:30 a.m.

This community volunteer event brings together friends, families, neighbors, and organizations to celebrate Earth Day and beautify Mount Desert Island and Trenton by cleaning up roadside trash, together.

Registration is now open for the April 30th event. Individuals and groups are encouraged to pre-register on the Friends of Acadia website at www.friendsofacadia.org/get-involved/events/earth-day-roadside-cleanup, before April 22 (which is actually Earth Day!).

“We’re thrilled to be back in action this year,” said Nikki Burtis, Friends of Acadia’s Stewardship Coordinator, who is organizing the annual event for the first time this year. “Being a part of the cleanup is a wonderful way to take pride in our communities, celebrate Earth Day, and welcome spring. This event kicks off our volunteer field season in Acadia and Mount Desert Island, and we’re so happy to be back together,” Burtis added.

Crews are assigned a cleanup location and given a meet-up place after they register. Volunteer crews collect and bag trash that is later picked up by Maine Department of Transportation. Many churches, work groups, or organizations sign up together as a community volunteer project. If you have event-related questions, call Nikki Burtis at 207-288-3934.

This year’s event sponsors include Acadia Shops, Asticou Inn, Bar Harbor Bank & Trust, Bar Harbor Savings and Loan, Bluenose Inn, Burdick & Associates Landscape Design, Dawnland, Fiore Artisan Oils and Vinegars, Galyn’s, Hannaford, Knowles Company, Lynam Agencies, John Williams Boat Company, Machias Savings Bank, Maine DOT, MDI Grows, MDI Hospital, and William Blair & Company.