I Love My Park Day volunteers sought

Volunteers are sought for New York's seventh annual "I Love My Park Day," which will be held on May 5. Credit: National Park Service
Outdoor-loving Long Islanders will get their chance to prove it on May 5, when volunteers can pitch in with park maintenance tasks, ranging from painting benches to gathering trash.
More than 135 state parks, historic sites and public lands, as well as national and municipal parks, will participate in the seventh annual “I Love My Park Day,” for volunteers across the state.
At previous events, individuals and various organizations, including Scouts and school groups, have taken part, often hauling away numerous bags filled with plastic bottles, wrappers, the odd sneaker and many other random items that were lost or tossed away.
“I encourage all New Yorkers to participate in lending a hand as we look to ensure that future visitors can continue to enjoy our state’s remarkable parks and historic sites,” State Parks Commissioner Rose Harvey said in a joint statement with the nonprofit Parks & Trails New York on Friday.
One statistic released Friday by the state Department of Transportation revealed “throwaways” are a statewide problem.
“More than 2,000 employees participated in a ‘Trash Blitz’ across the state on Monday to clean up litter along state highways in honor of Earth Day,” Acting Commissioner Paul A. Karas said in a statement. They collected 9,203 bags of garbage, he said.
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo in mid-March released the website to register: https://www.ptny.org/events/i-love-my-park-day.
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