Want to help the environment but aren’t sure where to start? Afraid your small changes won’t have a big enough impact? It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by all the environmental information and advice circulating online. For those who live in the DMV (and especially Fairfax County residents), Clean Fairfax is here to simplify sustainability.
Clean Fairfax is an independent nonprofit funded by the Commonwealth litter and recycling business tax. While the organization has an office in the Fairfax County Department of Public Works and Environmental Services, it’s neither a government agency nor a donor-funded organization. This independence gives Clean Fairfax the ability to focus on priority issues, react quickly, and tackle problems from a grassroots level—making environmental activism accessible to all.
“We are in a unique situation, so whenever we are presented with an opportunity, we are free to ask, ‘Who does this serve?” says Jen Cole, executive director for Clean Fairfax. “Does it serve the environment and the members of our community? If the answer is yes, then we’ll support it.”
From pick-up to prevention
Clean Fairfax began in 1978 as a litter task force led by local community members. Volunteers went out with bags, trash grabbers, and gloves to pick up trash. But when Cole came on board, she saw that even with all of the organized trash clean-ups, the amount of trash the teams were picking up wasn’t decreasing.
“We continued that model for a few years, but I thought maybe it was time to try a different paradigm,” says Cole. “Instead of trying to solve the problem by picking the trash up after the fact, I thought, why don’t we keep it from getting into the environment in the first place?”
This thought was the catalyst for building a new website focused on community education, with practical links and forms that allow citizens to take action immediately. Site visitors can contact their local representatives, report litter issues, and sign up for community events.
“Our efforts are focused primarily on prevention,” says Cole. “For example, as we come up to Plastic-Free July, most nonprofits will be encouraging people to replace their plastics with alternatives. That’s important, but everybody is suggesting those easy fixes. We will be talking about where plastic comes from in the first place, the low recycling rates, and where plastic waste ends up. There is a void between education and action that needs to be filled.” By focusing on prevention, Cole hopes to see the amount of trash collected by volunteers steadily decline.
Part of what makes Clean Fairfax’s approach successful is that they communicate concepts in ways that make sense to people. “For example, we’ve learned that people don’t really respond to, ‘Please recycle’, because it is so hard to know these days what actually can be recycled,” says Cole. “But if you give folks suggestions on ways to rely more on reusables, then you don’t have to ask, ‘Paper or plastic?’ You ask, ‘Reusable bag, bottle, or cup?”
Saving the planet one bag at a time
Clean Fairfax has had success on the advocacy front, as well. Recently, the organization worked at the state and local levels to get an ordinance passed to implement a $.05 fee or tax on disposable plastic grocery bags, which went into effect on January 1, 2022. While many people still use plastic bags, they are now paying for them. The revenue generated from the tax goes toward educating county residents on environmental waste and funding pollution and litter mitigation programs.
Cole notes that Clean Fairfax’s stream cleanup data for the past 18 months suggests that the disincentive is working.“We have been seeing a downward trend in the amount of plastic bag pollution, which we believe will continue,” she says.
In the end, Cole believes that for environmental activism and advocacy to be successful, you must make it easy to get involved, keep the communication simple, and show results. Recently, a publication asked Cole for a list of the top 10 things people can do to help the environment. She thought about it and lowered the list to five. “Then I realized that even five is too many,” she says. “So I brought it down to three.”
1. Know your legislator. “When people call with complaints about litter, my first question is, ‘Did you call your board of supervisors member?’ They almost always say, ‘No, who is that?’” says Cole. “I tell them that knowing your board of supervisors representative is your first line of defense.”
2. Lead by example. Bring your own bag to the store, cup to the coffee shop, silverware/plate/bowl to the office, and so on.
3. Vote for the things you want to change. Don’t expect other people to do it for you.
“This is great advice, whether you live in Fairfax County or not,” Cole concludes. “If you do live in Fairfax, that’s even better.”
To learn more about Clean Fairfax and how you can get involved, visit cleanfairfax.org.
Sustainably,
Bobby Firestein
For our 2023 Ecoprint calendar, Protecting the Natural Beauty of the Chesapeake Bay, we have partnered with 13 different organizations, all dedicated to helping solve the environmental challenges in this important ecological hub. Clean Fairfax is our featured partner for the month of June. To get your own 2023 Ecoprint calendar, click the button below.