Local Environmental Advocate Explains Madison County Adopt-a-Highway Program, Money Toward Clean-Up Efforts, More [Video]

ROXANA – Rusty Wheat is a one-man “chain gang”, but because of him, more people are talking about ways to keep the roads clean.

Wheat’s environmental advocacy work has been a big push toward litter cleanup in the area. In the past year, Madison County introduced an Adopt-a-Highway program and allocated $200,000 towards environmental clean-up efforts. Madison County and the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) have also installed signs that warn of penalties for littering, and the Roxana Police Department has already issued two citations following the signs’ installation.

“I will do anything and everything I can,” Wheat said. “I get out there and pick up trash on the hottest days. When it’s snowing out there, I’ll be out there picking up trash so people can see me and say, ‘Man, that guy’s an idiot. What’s he doing?’ But it draws attention to the issue.”

Madison County’s Adopt-a-Highway programis similar to IDOT’s program of the same name. This initiative encourages organizations …