The Lawrence-Scioto Solid Waste Management District has gotten a state award for its May county-wide cleanup event.

The 2011 Keep Ohio Beautiful annual meeting and awards luncheon was Friday in Columbus. The local entity was honored with the State Roadways Cleanup Award.

“I was shocked,” LSSWMD Director Dan Palmer said of the honor. “To think, we got this award out of (all the agencies in) the whole state of Ohio.”

Every year for the past three years, the local solid waste management district has spearheaded a day-long countywide cleanup that involved hundreds of volunteers from dozens of governmental agencies, civic organizations, school groups and churches.

It is in conjunction with the national Great American Cleanup, sponsored by the Keep America Beautful program that runs from March 1 – May 31. The idea is to employ the help of volunteers to clean up litter and make their communities cleaner and more attractive.

Last year 767 volunteers fanned out along 67 miles of roadway and filled 48 roll-off containers and eight truck loads with more than 1,000 bags of trash.

“I’m impressed with what they are able to accomplish in one day,” Keep Ohio Beautiful Executive Director Michael J. Mennett said. “And Dan and his staff do a lot of great things throughout the year, with the prescription take back day and other things.”

He said he is also pleased that so many volunteers and so many community groups are involved with the local cleanup event.

Palmer said it is those groups who share equally in the state honor; it is not solely that of the SWMD.

“It’s every group, every person who participated,” Palmer said. They are the ones who make this so successful. Tell me what other county has such a diverse group of volunteers as we do?”

The award, appropriately enough, is a deep blue disc that was made out of recycled glass bottles. It was presented to the SWMD by Matthew McKenna, the president and CEO of the national Keep America Beautiful program.