The second annual Clean Gloucester Day was a success, Clean Community coordinator Bill Bell said.

The event, held March 10, attracted approximately 300 volunteers, Bell said, and they collectively filled more than 550 large plastic bags with trash weighing roughly eight tons.

Although pleased with the volunteer effort, Bell said that the chilly morning saw only about half of the number of volunteers who turned out for last year’s Clean Gloucester Day when more than 12 tons of trash was collected.

Not only did fewer people turn out this year, Bell said, but many worked roads they had cleaned last year and found much less trash there this year.

Among some of the unexpected items retrieved were a two-piece sectional sofa and a number of tires. Much of the trash included cups, beverage cans, food wrappers and the like.

Bell said several groups concentrated clean-up efforts in and near Main Street in preparation for this weekend’s Daffodil Festival.

Although a number of groups picked up trash along Route 17 on March 10, Bell said, a ride down that major artery Monday found much litter strewn about. "It’s like we weren’t even there," he said.

The exact amount of trash collected is probably greater, Bell said, since not all participating groups recorded their collections last year, but simply hauled trash to the landfill instead of leaving filled bags along the roads for Virginia Department of Transportation crews to pick up.

"The volunteers were great," Bell said. "They are the ones who gave their time to pick up other people’s trash. They deserve all the thanks."

Bell gave special recognition to Chesapeake Bank, which provided monetary support for Clean Gloucester Day; to Home Depot and Lowe’s, which provided supplies used during the cleanup; VDOT, which contributed orange trash bags and collected bags left along roadsides, and Waste Management, which supplied two dumpsters for trash collection.

In other news, Bell said the Clean Community Committee is coordinating plans for some participation in Clean the Bay Day June 2.

Also, Bell said Lighthouse Worship Center is planning a major road clean-up on Sunday. For more information about ways to help the Clean Community Committee, contact Bell at 693-5370 or wbell@gloucesterva.info.