35+ years of keeping South Carolina beautiful
South Carolina has beautiful landscapes – from the lush green mountains to the coastal waterways. Our communities are surrounded by lakes, rivers, mountains, farmlands, national forests and state parks. We live here, work here and play here. Litter has been reduced by 60% over the past 30 years. Unfortunately, there are still people who insist on littering. Groups who adopt highways help move South Carolina further towards the mission of eradicating litter in our state.
Since 1987, Adopt-A-Highway volunteers have been cleaning up litter along South Carolina highways. The SCDOT coordinated the Adopt-A-Highway program until 2012 when it was then relocated under PalmettoPride’s umbrella. Adopt-A-Highway fits into our mission of eradicating litter and promoting beautification in our great state. PalmettoPride remains responsible for communications with AAH County Coordinators and local SCDOT offices, marketing, and recruiting more groups. The SCDOT continues to pick up bags after cleanups and maintain sign production and maintenance.
Our state and local governments do not have the financial resources available to clean up the litter on our roadways. Our wonderful volunteers are invaluable to keeping our state clean. Clean communities are safe communities. Clean communities are good for tourism and economic development. Clean communities are a source of pride for all of us who call South Carolina home. Cleanups provide your group with good publicity, team building experiences and the gift of giving back to your community by clearing its roadways. PalmettoPride provides support to ensure your group is safe, seamless, and successful in your cleanup efforts. Consider adopting a highway today!
How it works
- Contact your AAH County Coordinator. If you have a 2 mile stretch of state-maintained road you would like to adopt in mind, they can tell you if it is still available. They can also assign a spot to you if you don’t have one in mind.
- Once you have been assigned a road and your AAH County Coordinator has answered any questions you might have, fill out the Agreement Form. If your group is not ready to commit to the required four cleanups a year for a period of two years, fill out the One Time Cleanup Form. Once completed, you must return your forms to your AAH County Coordinator. There may be a waiting period for your forms to be approved.
- When your group has been approved and certified, your AAH County Coordinator will go through the next steps, such as communicating safety guidelines and how to get supplies. If supplies are not currently available through your AAH County Coordinator, contact your local KSCB affiliate or PalmettoPride for supplies. In some instances, your local KSCB affiliate is the AAH County Coordinator!
- For more information, contact the PalmettoPride Special Projects Manager, Joseph Berry at jberry@palmettopride.org.
Sister programs
While PalmettoPride manages the SC Adopt-a-Highway program, there are other opportunities to be the caretaker for designated locations in your communities. If these programs are not preexisting in your area, consider contacting your local KSCB affiliate or municipal government to pave the way.
- Adopt-a-Stream
- Adopt-a-Landing
- Adopt-a-Road
- Adopt-a-(Street-Garden-Spot)
- Adopt-a-Beach
- Beach Sweep/River Sweep
