In order to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 in Ottawa, GLAD Cleaning the Capital Spring Campaign activities will be delayed until further notice.
GLAD Cleaning the Capital registration is now open!
Register your litter pickup and/or graffiti removal project by May 15.
Thanks for taking part in the GLAD Cleaning the Capital campaign! Please submit one cleanup report for each project you completed by May 31, 2020 to be eligible for prizes.
The importance of registering: If you're cleaning up your neighbourhood or favourite green space, please register with us. People are encouraged to register in order to allow Cleaning the Capital organizers to distribute cleaning supplies, track the areas that have been cleaned and recognize volunteer work.
Register and WIN! Register within the early bird registration dates and you and your team will be eligible to win a prize donated by our generous sponsors.
As a business owner or employee, you can make a difference by volunteering time or resources for a cleaner city:
Registrants will receive a confirmation e-mail when their cleanup starter kit request has been submitted. Cleanup starter kits will be ready for pickup 9 days after registration. Please call the kit pickup location with your registration number to find out if your kit has arrived, as they will not necessarily contact you.
The GLAD Cleaning the Capital campaign is a citywide cleanup that occurs in the spring and fall of every year. Residents come together as a community and combine efforts to make our city clean and green. Litter pickup or graffiti removal projects must be registered, and participating teams, upon request, receive a cleanup starter kit to assist them with their projects. Participants who register their cleanups during the campaign’s early bird registration period and/or submit their on-line cleanup reports after their cleanup are eligible to win prizes donated by the campaign's generous sponsors.
2020 marks the 27th year of the GLAD Cleaning the Capital campaign! The annual cleanup campaign first began in 1994 as a springtime cleanup. In 2006, due to the spring campaign's overwhelming success an annual fall cleanup was added. Since 1994, more than 1.3 million volunteers have participated in more than 22,000 cleanup projects throughout the city. As a result, an estimated 1,100,000 kilograms of waste has been removed from our public spaces.
The GLAD Cleaning the Capital campaign is not-for-profit initiative and relies heavily on the generosity of sponsors who offer financial and in-kind support. Cleaning the Capital is an exciting way for residents to foster community pride by cleaning up their parks, bus stops, woodlots, ravines, shorelines and pathways, while enjoying the outdoors and ensuring that Ottawa stays clean, green, and graffiti and litter-free.
Litter pickup projects in public spaces and/or graffiti removal projects on select public assets can be registered through the Cleaning the Capital campaign. Choose to clean our precious green spaces and community parks, roadsides, and shorelines, or choose to clean areas around bus shelters by picking up litter and cigarette butts, and cleaning graffiti!
Absolutely! Ottawa has 4,500 kilometres of streams and rivers and that doesn’t include our lakes, ponds and wetlands. Our incredible wealth of water environments calls on us as residents to be shoreline stewards. What happens on shorelines affects the quality of the water and the life it supports. If you do sign up to clean a stretch of shoreline that you love, remember that the focus is only on human litter. Leave natural elements like logs and branches in place. If you would like some guidance in picking a priority stretch of shoreline, please contact your local conservation authority:
You can also take part in the Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup.
If you want to remove graffiti on select public assets as part of your Cleaning the Capital cleanup project, we can assist by providing:
For further details on registering a graffiti removal project during Cleaning the Capital, please e-mail us at cleaning@ottawa.ca.
Cigarette butts are litter too. They are not recyclable and they do not biodegrade. They are toxic and can take up to 12 years to breakdown. Remember to include picking up cigarette butts as part of your cleanup project. Make sure to wear gloves and to dispose of them in the garbage. If you are cleaning a paved area, use a broom and dust pan to sweep up the cigarette butts. If you are cleaning a grassy area, use a rake.
Cleanup starter kits are designed to get you started on your project and our generous sponsors donate the supplies. While we cannot provide unlimited supplies to volunteers, we will do our very best to ensure that you have enough supplies to complete your project. Cleanup starter kits are individually packed for each project team based on the number of volunteers you have registered. Need additional tools or supplies? Contact us! We may be able to further support your cleanup by loaning you shovels, rakes and/or litter pickers.
If you can’t find a project team, try to make one yourself! Tell your friends, family, neighbours and colleagues about your plans. Try approaching your community or neighbourhood association and asking if the whole community wants to get involved. Ask around at your children's school or your workplace or community centre.
If you still can't find a team, don't worry; many of our long-time Cleaning the Capital volunteers make an impact each and every year all by themselves. All it takes is one person to make a difference.
Cleaning the Capital is a great opportunity for high school students to get a head start on their Community Involvement Program volunteer hours. Students must simply:
Capital Cleanup Weekend is a three-day period (Friday to Sunday) during the Cleaning the Capital campaign when many of our councillors and generous sponsors visit cleanup projects throughout the city to thank our volunteers and hand out extra prizes!
Cleanup projects can be a fun and co-operative way to learn about the importance of a clean and safe environment. Teachers and students can organize school and community cleanup projects or challenge other grades and schools to see who can pick up the most litter or clean the most graffiti! Cleaning the Capital is a great opportunity for high school students to add to their Community Involvement Program Volunteer hours.
As an Ottawa business there are lots of ways you can help out during the campaign:
If you expect to or have collected large items and need assistance in disposing of these from your cleanup site, please contact us as soon as possible by calling 3-1-1. We will make special arrangements on your behalf to have the items picked up and properly disposed of. Remember to provide us with details on the location of the items such as the closest municipal address, a land mark or the nearest intersection.
Your Cleaning the Capital registration code is provided to you in an e-mail upon confirmation of your registration. It is used to submit your Cleanup Report at the end of your project. You may also find your registration code on the Kit Packing Sheet which accompanies your cleanup kit. If you have misplaced your registration code, please contact us.
Cleaning the Capital volunteers are encouraged whenever possible to bring their project garbage and recycling home for regular curbside collection. Please remember to comply with the six waste items limit every second week per household. Yard waste and recycling are not subject to this limit.
On-site project garbage pickup arrangements can be made. Simply call 613-580-2424, ext. 13458 to put in your pickup request. Remember to have on hand your registration code, the pickup date, time and the location the bags can be picked up. Please note that the location must be easily accessible and must not impede on any pedestrian, cycling or vehicular traffic. Whenever possible, please contact 3-1-1 ahead of time to make pickup arrangements in advance of your cleanup.
Ensure that your group compost, recycle and dispose of waste properly.
Bring all toxic materials to one of the City’s one-day Household Hazardous Waste Depots. Call 3-1-1 for more information.
Please “leave the leaves” in open areas! Leaves should be left in open spaces that are maintained by the City, including parks. Please remove leaves from areas where mowers cannot be used. Leaves, litter and debris tend to accumulate along fence lines, play structures and landscaped areas to name a few. Help improve our public spaces by making them clean and safe!
Moving wood can spread invasive insects and diseases to our forests. Please help us to grow a healthy forest for the nation's capital by not moving wood.
Leaving some of the coarse woody debris such as dead and downed wood such as logs, uprooted stumps, large branches and coarse roots on the ground is a recommended practice which contributes to long-term forest health. Coarse woody debris is essential for sustainable natural areas and benefits them by providing the following:
You should do everything you can to ensure that you and your project team are safe during your cleanup project. Some basic safety rules include:
The GLAD Cleaning the Capital campaigns are made possible through the support of GLAD, our other sponsors and our many volunteers. Thank you to the companies who have generously contributed to this year’s campaigns and have assisted in making our city clean and green!
