With the arrival of spring, the Bourbon County Commission decided Tuesday to hold a spring cleaning event for the county, encouraging residents of Bourbon County to take their trash to the landfill at no cost on April 22-23.

County commissioners discussed with public works director Jim Harris the issue of trash and large items such as tires and even mattresses being abandoned along the sides of the road throughout the county. To try to counteract that problem, and in honor of Earth Day on April 22, Bourbon County residents will be able to drop items off for free at the dump.

Harris said the county used to work with the local schools on Earth Day when students would clean up areas of town, transporting the trash to the dump. But the county has not participated in recent years. Harris said emphasizing such an event might discourage residents from throwing items away on the side of the road instead.

Each day, Harris said employees of the road department have to spend time picking up trash when they should be working on the roads, costing the county and taxpayers money that could be put to better use.

All normal rules apply to the special event concerning dumping, such as not permitting paint, oil or batteries to be disposed of there. Other items such as tires, appliances and other objects, which normally are charged according to weight, will be accepted from residences, but not commercial businesses.

The landfill will be open Friday, April 22, all day and Saturday, April 23, until 2 p.m. The commissioners said they hope to hold such events more than once a year.