/ The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Department should soon haveanother weapon in its efforts to keep litter off county roads,officials said.

/ The sheriff’s department and the Mississippi Department ofTransportation have formed an alliance where the sheriff’sdepartment provides manpower and MDOT covers supervision andtransportation-related costs to fight litter on state roads in thecounty.

/ “It’s just another way we have to help stop a senselessproblem,” said Sheriff Lynn Boyte.

/ According to Barbara Mercier, MDOT district programspecialist, MDOT identifies routes for pick up and will furnishtrash bags, safety vests and advisory signs. It will also reimbursethe county for vehicle mileage and salary-related costs for adeputy to supervise the work crew.

/ The sheriff’s department will provide at least five inmatesfor the work crew, deputy supervision and transportation.Transportation requirements were helped earlier this week when MDOTsold the sheriff’s department a work van for $1.

/ Boyte said the crews will work a minimum of four days a week,seven hours a day.

/ The crew is expected to be made up of state inmates assignedto the county through an agreement with the Mississippi Departmentof Corrections. All that is missing now are the inmates, Boytesaid.

/ “They should be coming any time,” the sheriff said.

/ The MDOT-related crew will focus efforts on state roads in thecounty. Another work crew, made up of some county inmates andpeople assigned to work off justice court fines, could focus oncounty roads.

/ “This’ll give us, basically, two different crews once we getit up and going,” Boyte said.

/ Ronnie Durr, county solid waste-litter coordinator, was gladto see the addition of another crew in the anti-littercampaign.

/ “This will be a welcome help to us,” Durr said. “This willenhance our ability to cover more area in the county and just domore.”

/ Durr also mentioned education-related efforts to keep litteroff roads.

/ Durr said Juanita Britt has received training from KeepMississippi Beautiful and its anti-litter program has beenimplemented into the curriculum in the Lincoln County SchoolDistrict. Officials are also working on getting the program in theBrookhaven School District and at Brookhaven Academy.

/ “We’re doing it one step at a time, doing what we can when wecan,” Durr said.

/ Durr offered a glimmer of optimism that the anti-littermessage is getting through. The coordinator mentioned a southDistrict 4 neighborhood clean-up effort that resulted in over 50bags of trash and garbage being picked up.

/ “Litter is not safe until it’s in a bag leaving LincolnCounty,” Durr said.