Green Deer

March 2023 Update:

The Spring Cleanup Campaign is on from March 21 to May 31! Registration is free, fast, and easy. After registering online, you can pick up your free cleanup supplies from the Kerry Wood Nature Centre, Red Deer Recreation Centre, G.H. Dawe Community Centre, or Collicutt Centre.

Registration Form

Green Deer encourages residents of all ages, abilities, and economic and cultural backgrounds to pick up litter and “leave it better than you found it!” Participating in Green Deer is a great way to have a positive environmental impact, build social connections, and give back to your community—not to mention both the physical and mental benefits of spending time outside!

Several different Green Deer initiatives work together to keep our city looking its best:

Before beginning a litter cleanup in your community, please take a moment to review the safety information at the bottom of this page.

For more information on any part of the Green Deer program, please email reddeergreendeer(at)gmail.com.

Spring Cleanup Campaign

March 21 – May 31, 2023

You can do your part to help keep our city clean by registering for the Spring Cleanup Campaign and picking up litter in your backyard, around your neighbourhood, or in a favourite green space.

Parents and teachers can use the Green Deer Spring Cleanup Campaign as an opportunity to show children and teens that we are all responsible for our own actions, to foster a mindset of environmental stewardship, and to teach the safe handling and disposal of different types of waste.

Registration for the Spring Cleanup Campaign is free, fast, and easy. Everyone is encouraged to register so Green Deer organizers can distribute cleaning supplies, track the areas that have been cleaned, and recognize volunteer work. All registrants are automatically entered to win prizes!

The Green Deer Spring Cleanup Campaign is made possible through partnerships with Save-On-Foods, Canadian Tire Red Deer South, Real Country 95.5 & Zed 98.9, and The City of Red Deer.

Volunteer in 5 easy steps

  1. Register online.
  2. Pick up free cleanup supplies at the Kerry Wood Nature Centre, Red Deer Recreation Centre, G.H. Dawe Community Centre, or Collicutt Centre. Be prepared to show the confirmation email you received after registering.
  3. Review the safety information at the bottom of this page.
  4. Go for a walk and pick up litter! Keep a tally of the number of cigarette butts, face masks, and needles you clean up.
  5. After your cleanup, report your tally, and if necessary, report the location of any garbage that didn't fit in your household black cart (e.g., filled Green Deer garbage bags you left by City garbage cans, and any large/heavy/difficult-to-reach items). If you found a rough sleeper camp, please report it to the RCMP non-emergency line at 403-406-2200.
    Report Tally: Butts, Masks, Needles Report Location: Filled Green Deer Bags & Large Items

No contribution is too big or too small

If you’re looking for new ways to participate in the Spring Cleanup Campaign that don’t require a considerable time commitment or pre-planned large-scale cleanups, consider trying one of the following:

  • Pick up a single piece of litter every day for a month.
  • Once a week, bring a bag and gloves to pick up litter when you walk your dog or go for a run. Did you know that picking up litter while jogging is called plogging? Plogging is a great way to incorporate squats into your cardio workout!
  • Purposefully commit to pick up every piece of litter the wind blows onto your property all year long.
  • Light up social media with your #trashtag.
  • Issue a challenge to a friend...or rival. Use our challenge toolkit to get creative and set the stage for some friendly rivalry.
    Challenge Toolkit

River Valley Cleanups

June 10, 2023 & September 16, 2023

Formerly called the Red Deer River Cleanup and Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup, these annual spring and fall initiatives are now united under one name. Both the spring and fall River Valley Cleanups draw volunteers from across the city to join together to keep the Red Deer River, tributary creeks, and surrounding green spaces litter-free.

To volunteer for either cleanup:

  1. Arrive at the Kerry Wood Nature Centre any time between noon and 1:00 p.m. on the day of the cleanup. No pre-registration required. Suggested to bring/wear:
    • Visible, weather-appropriate clothing
    • Closed-toe walking shoes
    • Hat
    • Water bottle
    • Sunscreen
    • Bug spray
    • Gloves
    • Mask
  2. Sign our waiver form, get assigned a cleanup route, and start picking up litter as soon as you're ready to go. We provide garbage bags, disposable gloves, first aid kits, and garbage grabbers for those who need them.
  3. Return to the Kerry Wood Nature Centre between 2:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. to return your unused supplies, submit your cleanup route map, receive a certificate if you want one, enjoy some light refreshments, and get a raffle ticket.
  4. The prize raffle will begin shortly after 3:00 p.m.!
  5. Go home after the prize raffle with a smile on your face and a warm fuzzy feeling from knowing you did something good today.

Please stay home if you are exhibiting symptoms or have recently tested positive for COVID-19.

The Green Deer River Valley Cleanups are made possible thanks to the generosity and support of NOVA Chemicals, INEOS Canada Partnership, Friends of the Kerry Wood Nature Centre, and The City of Red Deer.

Adopt a park

Is there a green space in Red Deer that’s special to you? Why not adopt it?

All Adopt a Park volunteers are automatically eligible to win the Green Deer Spring Cleanup Campaign prize.

More information on the Adopt a Park program.

Cigarette butt awareness program

A little litter Does a lot of damage

Cigarette butts are the most commonly littered item worldwide and Red Deer is no exception. Unfortunately, littered cigarette butts do not disappear and can result in a fine of up to $1000.

A common myth is that cigarette butts are not harmful litter because the filter is made out of cotton that will easily decompose. In truth, a typical cigarette butt filter is made out of a type of plastic called cellulose acetate. These filters can take up to ten years to decompose, leaving behind microplastic pollution.

The microplastic pollution that comes from cigarette butts isn’t even the worst of what happens to that little cigarette butt that gets tossed on the ground. Cigarette butts leach toxins into the environment, get eaten by wildlife, are a primary cause of house and forest fires, and cost millions of taxpayer dollars to clean up.

If you choose to smoke, please do your part to dispose of cigarette butts responsibly.

Have you heard of pocket ashtrays?

Pocket ashtrays are a convenient way to butt out on-the-go. The air seal suffocates smokables (so you can insert a lit cigarette) and keeps the smell in!

Pocket ashtrays are the perfect addition to your everyday life (pop it in your purse, backpack, or car), but also for your adventures. The small size is ideal for camping, kayaking, or anything you do while out and about—if you can carry a pack of cigarettes and a lighter, then you can also carry a pocket ashtray.

Thanks to funding from TD Friends of the Environment Foundation and The City of Red Deer, free pocket ashtrays in two different fun designs can be picked up at the Kerry Wood Nature Centre year-round. Please email reddeergreendeer(at)gmail.com if you would like to request a large number of pocket ashtrays.

Want to help spread the word?

If you are from an organization or business that would like to help spread the word about the harmful effects of littered cigarette butts and the availability of free pocket ashtrays, you are welcome to use any of the following Cigarette Butt Awareness Program poster designs:

Moose Poster Birds Poster Litter Poster Fire Poster

Interested in recycling your cigarette butts?

Collect your cigarette butts at home or at work, then send them in to be recycled using a free shipping label. More information on recycling cigarette butts.

Ready to quit smoking?

Information on quitting smoking from Alberta Quits.

Eco-Trivia Party

Eco-Trivia Party is Green Deer’s free education and outreach program, created for students from Kindergarten to Grade 12, and designed to work in any indoor, outdoor, or virtual classroom. The Eco-Trivia Party program length can vary from 45 minutes to 1.5 hours, depending on your class’ schedule and learning needs. The launch of Eco-Trivia Party in 2021 was made possible thanks to funding from TD Friends of the Environment Foundation.

Eco-Trivia Party Request Form

When you book an Eco-Trivia Party, a Green Deer representative will lead your class through a gameshow activity that gets your students learning about and engaging with relevant environmental concerns in an age-appropriate manner. At the end of the program, each participant will commit to a personal change that will have a positive environmental impact. After the Eco-Trivia Party, groups are highly encouraged to take action and make a difference in their community through a Green Deer litter cleanup (supplies provided as needed).

The Eco-Trivia Party and post-program litter cleanup have curriculum connections at all grade levels, including ties to science, social studies, environmental and outdoor education, and leadership development. Children and youth who participate in the Eco-Trivia Party program will develop a sense of personal and shared responsibility for actions taken; foster respect for living things and environments, and commitment for their care; and explore simple ideas to pursue a balance between the needs of humans and a sustainable environment.

Teacher Resource for Classroom Litter Cleanups

Safety Information

When preparing for your Green Deer cleanup, make sure you are dressed appropriately for the weather and the task. Wear gloves and closed-toe shoes, and use a grabbing device or trash picker for hard-to-reach items. Take the time to review the following safety information on rough sleeper camps, needles, and ticks and Lyme disease prior to your Green Deer cleanup.

Rough Sleeper Camps

If you find a rough sleeper (homeless) camp while participating in Green Deer, do not dismantle it under any circumstances. Instead, please call the RCMP non-emergency line at 403-406-2200. More information can be found on The City of Red Deer’s website.

Needles

Never reach blindly into bushes or tall grasses to pick up litter. Always ensure you can see the entire piece of litter before picking it up. In addition to other dangerous items, such as broken glass, there is the possibility of finding discarded needles.

If you find a needle, cover or mark the needle with an object, then call 403-342-8238 for disposal. If you are equipped and able to pick up the needle yourself (you have gloves, tongs or pliers, and a hard sharps container), then please refer to Red Deer’s Needle Disposal Guide for needle pickup instructions. Never place needles in a plastic bag or garbage can as this puts other people at risk, especially staff responsible for picking up and changing garbage cans throughout the city.

There is growing concern of the health risks posed by accidental needlestick injuries, especially among parents of young children. The safety of all Green Deer participants is of top priority, however it is important to not let our fears override the facts. The risk of contracting a blood-borne illness (Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, or HIV) after a community-acquired needlestick injury is extremely low. The risks are much lower for community-acquired needlestick injuries compared to those sustained in a healthcare setting in part because community needles rarely contain fresh blood.

A study by the Canadian Paediatric Society found “A review of the literature up to July 2018 yielded 14 case series from areas of high prevalence for blood-borne viruses. These studies involved a total of 613 children with follow-up for HIV, 575 for HBV, and 394 for HCV. There were no transmissions.”

Another study of 274 paediatric patients with community-acquired needlestick injuries at two Montreal hospitals over a period of 19 years found there were no seroconversions upon testing for Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, and HIV. This study also found that "64.6% of children purposely picked up the needle," indicating that the simple act of educating children and youth about needles could prevent a significant number of community-acquired needlestick injuries in paediatric patients.

If you or someone you know has been poked by a used needle, wash the affected area with soap and water, and talk to your doctor or call 811. Further information is available on the MyHealth Alberta website.

Ticks and Lyme Disease

At the end of your Green Deer cleanup, remember to check your body for ticks. Lyme disease is caused by a spiral-shaped bacterium, usually transmitted by the bite of an infected tick. More information on ticks and Lyme disease for Albertans is provided on the Alberta government website. More information on how to protect you and your loved ones is in the Central Alberta Lyme Society brochure, Tick Hot Spot poster, and guide to repellents.