May 22 , 2007

CONTACT: Josh Spradling
1-800-CLEAN-TX

Nine Texas Communities Receive Prestigious Environmental Award
Keep Texas Beautiful Announces
Governor’s Community Achievement Award Winners

(Austin, Texas) -- Keep Texas Beautiful (KTB) announced on May 22 the nine winners of the 2007 Governor’s Community Achievement Awards (GCAA), one of the most prestigious annual environmental awards in Texas. The communities of Dickinson, Katy, Lake Jackson, Munday, Pearland, Plano, Sanger, Throckmorton, and Waco were selected by KTB to share an award of one million dollars from the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) to be used for landscaping projects in their communities.

Keep Texas Beautiful chose one community from each of nine population categories for their achievements in seven areas including community leadership and coordination, education, public awareness, litter prevention and cleanup, illegal dumping enforcement, beautification and property improvement, and solid waste management.

“These communities have made outstanding efforts to clean and beautify their environment,” Debbie Johnston, Keep Texas Beautiful President, said. “Texans should be proud of the work put forth by the citizens, businesses, and local governments in these communities to improve their neighborhoods, schools, parks, and public spaces. They are helping to make our state the most beautiful in the nation!”

Every community in Texas is eligible to apply for the Governor’s Community Achievement Award. The winners each receive a share in one million dollars worth of landscape prizes based on population categories. The smallest population category (under 1,000) receives $60,000 in landscaping projects; the largest population category (more than 250,000) receives $265,000 worth of landscaping projects.

The GCAA program has recognized outstanding communities for 38 consecutive years, and the Texas Department of Transportation has provided the prize funds since 1985. KTB will formally award these communities on July 12, 2007 in San Antonio during the 40th Annual Keep Texas Beautiful Conference.

Keep Texas Beautiful, a statewide grassroots environmental and community improvement nonprofit and affiliate of Keep America Beautiful, strives to educate and engage Texans to take responsibility for improving their community environment. KTB and its more than 340 affiliates work with government, businesses, civic groups, and volunteers to ensure that every Texan has the opportunity to take individual responsibility for making Texas the cleanest, most beautiful state in the nation. For more information on programs and events, call 1-800-CLEAN-TX or visit www.ktb.org.

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Click here for a full winner’s list and fact sheet