4-H naturalist and Keep Wakulla County Beautiful ask county to back June cleanup and adopt‑a‑spot expansion

Two community presentations at the start of the meeting highlighted youth environmental education and a countywide cleanup drive.

Hiroshi, a member of the 4‑H Florida Naturalist Club, told commissioners the club teaches local ecosystem knowledge and that members recently visited a marine lab and marsh at Panacea to dip‑net and study coastal species. ‘‘Learning about the environment is not enough. You also have to learn how to take care of it,’’ Hiroshi said, describing junior naturalist certification and field trips to upland, freshwater and coastal sites.

Keep Wakulla County Beautiful volunteers Tammy Nason and Christina Sinabria described plans to expand adopt‑a‑road into an 'adopt‑a‑spot' program that would let schools, businesses and families adopt parks, boat ramps and other county properties. Sinabria outlined a community event planned for Saturday, June 13 at Hudson Park as part of a national 250th‑anniversary cleanup effort and asked commissioners to help publicize the event and consider a proclamation. Sinabria said the group hopes to recruit participants to pledge to pick up 250 pieces of litter and to plant 250 trees in the county as part of the yearlong observance.

What happens next: Keep Wakulla County Beautiful will return with more information and has provided flyers and pledge materials; commissioners expressed support and the group will coordinate details with county staff.