Project Pickup held its final meeting of the school year on Earth Day, which was April 22. The club met every two weeks on Wednesday after school to clean up trash around the school property and the local area, including the bridge on the south side of the building facing Overland Drive. Project Pickup is the first organized effort to clean up the school campus and is completely student-led.

Despite being named one of the cleanest cities in Kansas by the Topeka-Capital Journal and taking measures like banning plastic bags in 2024, AP Environmental Science teacher and Project Pickup sponsor Julie Schwarting said Lawrence still faces major problems with pollution.

“[Trash] blows or washes in the areas that we don’t see it anymore, but it’s still in the area, washing downstream. I’ve seen worse places, but I think we could all be a little more careful,” Schwarting said.

Schwarting said that the local area receives a lot of pollution blown in from the nearby commercial district, and that it has affected both the school campus and the Free State prairie. She said that when trash blows into the prairie, it stops pollution from blowing into waterways, but harms the wildlife that lives there.

Pollution exists beyond the Free State area and Lawrence as a whole. According to the nonprofit Keep America Beautiful, nearly 50 billion pieces of litter pollute roads and waterways in the United States, which is around 152 pieces of litter per U.S. resident.

However, Schwarting said that Project Pickup has made a noticeable difference in the amount of trash polluting the area.  She said that the student leadership has raised awareness about pollution and helped students get involved in the community.

Sophomore Elijah Moneymaker, who has worked with Project Pickup through Key Club, said that the student leadership encourages students to help the school in their own ways, rather than a teacher telling them to do something. Moneymaker said that although the school has faced problems with pollution, Project Pickup has made a noticeable impact, and the school is cleaner.

“It’s really spaced out around the school, so you don’t see it as much. But when project pickup is around, and you really see how much they gather, it’s a substantial amount,” Moneymaker said.

Freshman Avery Koester has gone to almost every Project Pickup meeting this year, and said the club has helped her meet new people, support her community, local nature and keep the school clean. She said that the student-led aspect of the club encouraged her to join.

“[Project Pickup] helps build community within the students, people who actually care about the environment,” Koester said.