Last week, Selma City Councilwoman Jannie Thomas and Dallas County Commissioner Valerie Reubin travelled to Hattiesburg, Mississippi to take part in the Keep Alabama Beautiful and Keep Mississippi Beautiful Conference hosted by Keep America Beautiful.

The regional conference was the first for Thomas and Reubin, who separately and collaboratively have led much of the beautification efforts taking place across the city and county.

The conference, which brought together state and city organizations from the two states, provided attendees with information regarding the impact that litter can have on a city and ways to fight back.

“When you’ve got people coming to a city, they want to see a clean city,” Thomas said. “When people see trash and litter, they don’t want to come.”

According to Thomas, more than 500 bags of trash were picked up through volunteer efforts led by Thomas, Reubin and Selma City Councilwoman Miah Jackson between July and August.

Thomas noted that various speakers discussed the impact that litter can have, specifically the fact that it invites criminal behavior and steers away tourists and potential residents.

Presenters at the conference recommended that cities hire a retired police officer to hand out tickets to litterers, an effort bolstered by a new Alabama law that took effect Sept. 1 – the new anti-littering law increases the fine for first offenders from $250 to $500; for second-time and subsequent offenders, the fine increased from $500 to $1,000 with the possibility of up to 100 hours of community service.

“People need to know what the consequences are,” Thomas said. “When people start paying these fines, maybe they won’t litter so much.”

Additionally, Thomas would like to see Selma launch its own Keep Selma Beautiful campaign, complete with signs and collaborative efforts.

With that in mind, Thomas is already making plans to take part in Keep America Beautiful’s 2019 America Recycles Day on Nov. 15.