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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Diane C. Birdwell @512-478-8813
Friday, May 25, 2001

KEEP TEXAS BEAUTIFUL ANNOUNCES ENVIRONMENTAL EXCELLENCE AWARD WINNERS
Brownwood Wins Top Award!

(Austin, Texas) - Who Keeps Texas Beautiful? The citizens of Brownwood do, that's who. Brownwood is one of nine communities presented the Governor's Community Achievement Award by Keep Texas Beautiful, Inc. (KTB) and will share $1,000,000 in landscaping prizes from the Texas Department of Transportation for excellence in community environmental programming. The City of Brownwood and Keep Brownwood Beautiful will be recognized at the 34th Annual Keep Texas Beautiful Convention in Fort Worth, June 26 - June 29, 2001 for their efforts.

Keep Brownwood Beautiful (KBB), an affiliate of Keep Texas Beautiful, had an incredible year with much of the success coming from the outstanding volunteer spirit of the citizens of Brownwood as well as a strong partnership with the City of Brownwood, the Brownwood Independent School District, the Brownwood Economic Development Commission, Brown County, the Brownwood Chamber of Commerce, as well as numerous local businesses and community and civic organizations. Volunteers working on behalf of KBB contributed more than 4,500 hours to such projects as the Don't Mess with Texas Trash-Off held in April, the Riverside Park river cleanup, the downtown area cleanup, and the energetic "Cash for Trash" program.

In addition to the numerous cleanup events, KBB also focused its efforts on community beautification, litter prevention, environmental education, and recycling efforts. Page 2 KBB's community beautification projects can be seen at nearly every corner of town - from nine mini-parks to the 550 plants sold at the Second Annual Crepe Myrtle and Texas Purple Sage Sale. In support of Texas Arbor Day, KBB planted six trees at one of the highly visible mini-parks and eight local businesses added greenspaces to their property during a road-widening project by the Texas Department of Transportation.

KBB has also placed importance on illegal dumping and enforcement working in conjunction with the city's code enforcement administrator who produced two brochures for citizens - "Top 10 Code Violations" and "Did You Know." Bumper stickers were also produced promoting the illegal dumping hotline telephone number. In addition, the city of Brownwood distributed more than 500 tarps to vehicles that were uncovered as they entered the Recycling and Citizen Collection Center or the landfill.

One of the highlights of the year was the opening of the City's Recycling and Citizen Collection Center during the week of Texas Recycles Day. To promote recycling, the City allows free entrance to citizens who bring in recyclable goods. Citizens are also permitted to bring some hazardous wastes like pesticides and paint to the Center.

This marks the 32nd Annual Governor's Community Achievement Awards, which are presented to communities in nine population categories that have the best grassroots volunteer environmental programs in the state. The communities exhibited excellence in community leadership, litter prevention, public awareness, education, solid waste management and recycling, illegal dumping enforcement and beautification. These prizes are designated for landscaping along state-maintained highways in their communities.

According to Debbie Moody, KTB board president, the quality of the entries from the communities was exceptional. "It's obvious the citizens of Brownwood are committed to environmental stewardship and to making their city the most outstanding community in Texas. This year's awards have proven that Page 3 one can make a difference," she said. "One scout troop, one civic organization, or one local business can make a recognizable difference in their community."

Keep Texas Beautiful, the nonprofit state affiliate of Keep America Beautiful, strives to empower Texans through education to take responsibility for enhancing their community's environment. KTB works with volunteers, elected officials, businesses and state and federal agencies 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 the website at www.ktb.org.

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