National Public Lands Day, which will take place on Sept. 26, will be celebrated at P{hil’s World with a “Trasher Hunt,” staying with the theme of keeping our public lands beautiful.

Each year, thousands of Americans take part in Public Lands Day, the nation’s largest hands-on volunteer effort to improve and enhance the public lands. Last year, 150,000 volunteers participated at more than 2,000 locations across the U.S. Their efforts to build trails, remove invasive species, paint signs, beautify landscaping, remove trash, etc., totaled millions of dollars in improvements.

This year marks the 15th anniversary of National Public Lands Day projects on Bureau of Land Management Lands, Tres Rios Field Office. The event is organized in partnership with San Juan Mountains Association (SJMA), the Tres Rios Field Office and Southwest Cycling Association (formerly Kokopelli Bike Club) and is a project of the National Environmental Education Foundation.

This year’s project is a continuation of the 2013 project and will be located on BLM’s Phil’s World in Cortez. For many years portions of the 2,000 acres of pinion and juniper have been dumping grounds for trash

Adults, motorized/non-motorized and youth volunteers are encouraged to sign- up. Trash bags, buckets and any tools will be provided to the workers. ATVs are encouraged to participate. Volunteers must wear long pants, sturdy shoes, eye protection such as sunglasses and gloves. Lunch and T-shirts will be provided to registered participants. Please contact Kathe Hayes, kathe@sjma.org or 385-1310 to register by Sept. 24 and receive additional details.