The State of Mississippi will host Keep America Beautiful for the kickoff of the organization's signature event, the Great American Cleanup. The nationwide event, now.... The State of Mississippi will host Keep America Beautiful for the kickoff of the organization's signature event, the Great American Cleanup. The nationwide event, now in its 21st year, mobilizes millions of volunteers each spring to clean, beautify and improve their communities.

The 2006 Great American Cleanup kickoff event -- the Hurricane Katrina Restoration project -- will take place on March 2, 2006, at the Biloxi Town Green. The project is an effort to clean up, fix up and beautify a community that was ravaged by the Hurricane Katrina disaster.

The primary objective of the work done in each area is to make a visible difference in the community in one day by cleaning and replanting to achieve coastal restoration and a more beautiful Biloxi. Ongoing Great American Cleanup activities in the Biloxi area this spring will include additional debris removal and tree plantings, household hazardous waste collection, the collection of electronic debris for proper disposal and recycling, and roadway/waterway litter cleanup.

In 2006, the Great American Cleanup is expected to involve 2.5 million people, who will volunteer more than 8 million hours to clean, beautify and improve 15,000 communities during 30,000 events from coast to coast in all 50 states. Activities will include beautifying parks and recreation areas, cleaning seashores and waterways, handling recycling collections, picking up litter, planting trees and flowers, and conducting educational programs and litter-free events.

Last year 2.4 million Great American Cleanup volunteers collected a record-breaking 208 million pounds of litter and debris; planted 4.2 million flowers and bulbs; cleaned 176,000 miles of roads, streets and highways; and cleaned 10,250 miles of rivers, lakes and shorelines. According to a 2005 Keep America Beautiful survey, 92 percent of Great American Cleanup organizers noted that their communities, neighborhoods and residents felt safer after volunteers united to clean and beautify their local environment.