- Home
- Community
- Get Involved
- Volunteer
- Adopt-a-Spot
Adopt-a-Spot
Bainbridge Island's Volunteer Litter Cleanup Program
Volunteer With Us
Adopt a Spot volunteers are dedicated to keeping Bainbridge Island clean, one spot at a time! We welcome individuals, households, businesses, and organizations to join this community effort.
Sign Up
If you are interested in participating in the program you can fill out an interest form here. Once you fill it out, a member of City staff will get back to you within five business days.
Volunteer Forms
Safety
By becoming a City of Bainbridge Island volunteer, you agree to follow all written and verbal safety instructions. Volunteers are provided a written safety plan for their adopted area that includes detailed safety requirements.
Kitsap County's Adopt-a-Spot program created short safety videos that give an overview of how to stay safe. We require volunteer s to watch these videos prior to a cleanup and anytime they need a refresher.
Report a Safety Concern
You may come across safety concerns like pollution spills, dangerous wastes, illegal dumping, road or sign problems while you are out in the community. Please report problems with See Click Fix.
Call 911 for serious incidents
Physical Requirements
Litter cleanup requires light to moderate physical effort. It involves considerable use of your arms, legs, and moving your whole body, such as walking, balancing, standing, lifting, carrying, pushing/pulling, twisting, reaching, grasping, and stooping/bending. It also involves repetitive motions of bending, stooping, reaching, and squeezing/grasping litter bags, litter, and litter grabber tools. Volunteers should be able to lift up to 20 pounds to carry litter bags and up to 27 pounds for traffic signs. Volunteers must be able to hold the litter bag away from their body to prevent potential injury from items inside the bag. Volunteers should not exceed their physical limitations.
Volunteers must have adequate vision and hearing that allows them to safely work near traffic and identify hazards at the adopted location e.g., approaching vehicles, sharp materials, uneven ground, stinging insects. Volunteers must be able to maintain situational awareness and follow written and verbal directions to ensure the safety of oneself and others. There is potential for walking on uneven ground and slippery surfaces, and potential for exposure to dust, particles, stinging insect stings, allergens, sharp items, hazardous materials, hostile individuals, and traffic hazards. Volunteers must be able to interact and communicate with the public in a professional manner and positively represent the City of Bainbridge Island. Volunteers should have the initiative to work independently and be able to work outside.
Frequently Asked Questions
What area can I adopt?
Many public roads maintained by the City of Bainbridge Island are adoptable. We request that you submit a primary and secondary adopt preference. We will inspect the area you wish to adopt and provide guidance on how to safely maintain it.
How often should I clean up litter?
We recommend cleaning your area at least twice a year or whenever it's needed. For roads, it's best to clean in the spring before vegetation growth and in late fall after vegetation goes dormant.
Can youth volunteers participate?
Volunteers under 18 must be supervised by a parent or legal guardian while volunteering. Guardians must sign a Volunteer Service Agreement on the child's behalf prior to participation. Youth under 15 may not volunteer on roadsides.
What should I do if I find something dangerous while volunteering?
Volunteers are not expected or encouraged to handle dangerous or unsafe litter including sharps, hazardous materials, and large or heavy items. Only collect small litter that you can identify as safe and will fit in a bag. If you find dangerous or questionable items, please mark the location and report it to the City in your Cleanup Report.
Where should I dispose of collected litter?
You can place litter bags inside your home's trash if you have room, or you can take program litter bags to the Bainbridge Island Transfer Station. Bainbridge Disposal staff accepts Adopt a Spot litter bags at no cost.
What if the area I'm interested in is already adopted?
There are plenty of areas available to adopt. When you fill out an interest form, you are required to submit a secondary adoption preference. If the primary area is adopted and your secondary area is available and eligible, you will adopt your secondary location. If both spots are adopted, we kindly request you submit another interest form with two more location options. The more spots that are adopted, the more we can collectively clean in the community!
What are the physical requirements of this volunteer role?
Litter cleanup requires light to moderate physical effort. Volunteers must meet minimum mobility and lifting requirements to navigate terrain and move trash bags and traffic signs. Volunteers must have adequate vision, hearing, and judgement that allows them to safely work near traffic and identify hazards. Volunteer also need to meet others minimum qualifications. See the Safety section above for full qualification details.