The Take Pride in America in Southern Nevada program, managed by the Public Lands Institute (PLI) at UNLV, has been named the best state program in the nation for its campaigns to encourage cleanup and discourage littering and illegal dumping in Nevada.

The recognition comes from Take Pride in America, a national partnership program aimed at increasing volunteer service on America's public lands. Each year, Take Pride selects outstanding examples of stewardship across the country. The Southern Nevada program is one of 11 programs nationwide to be honored for their efforts.

The Take Pride in America in Southern Nevada program is a conservation initiative of the Southern Nevada Agency Partnership (SNAP), a unique interagency collaboration comprised of the Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, and U.S. Forest Service. The program is funded by the Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act.

"The growth of Southern Nevada and the popularity of our public lands have an unfortunate side effect of increased littering and desert dumping," said Angie Lara, chair of the SNAP board of directors and associate field manager of the Bureau of Land Management's Las Vegas Field Office. "This program was created to address those issues. We are grateful for the results, the favorable response from the community, and the national recognition of our efforts."

Initiated in 2005, the program has conducted and supported more than 60 clean-up events involving 2,857 volunteers, dozens of organizations, and alternative work forces that resulted in the removal of 3,713 cubic yards of waste from public lands. If the trash was placed in cubic yard boxes and stacked on top of each other, it would reach more than 11,000 feet high, 11 times taller than the Stratosphere Tower in Las Vegas. The program also implemented the Don't Trash Nevada campaign, a messaging campaign to increase awareness about littering and dumping and ways to prevent it. The campaign has generated more than one million visits to its website and enticed over one thousand people to pledge not to litter.

"We managed this program with the clear purpose of gaining an increased community sense of ownership and responsibility for the stewardship of our public lands," said Margaret N. Rees, PLI executive director. "We have seen the positive impact on the public lands and a greater respect for the environment in general."

Program representatives were among the winners honored at an awards ceremony on July 18 at the Department of Interior in Washington, D.C. Visit www.donttrashnevada.org for more information on Take Pride in America in Southern Nevada and Don't Trash Nevada.