Thanksgiving is a time of reflection. A time to express gratitude and give thanks for our many blessings. Here in Tennessee, we have so many things to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. Here’s our top four.

Tennessee’s Natural Beauty

Tennessee’s natural beauty is all around us and what an amazing resource for all our residents. Our state is home to some of the most beautiful lakes, rivers and streams. We sure don’t want to leave any of them out, but with 57 state parks, 13 Designated Scenic Byways and more than 17,000 miles of streams and waterways throughout the state, we have plentiful natural resources. They are so beautiful, we need to keep them litter free!

Tennessee’s Litter Prevention Partners

Litter is a big problem in our state and costs over 23 million annually to address. This Thanksgiving we are grateful to our Adopt-A-Highway groups throughout the state who give of their time to help us beautify our roadways.

We are also grateful to our partners Keep Tennessee Beautiful and Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful and their volunteers around the state who are leading the way to help keep trash off our roadways and waterways.

Tennessee’s Diverse Wildlife

Our diverse wildlife is one of our state’s amazing resources. Birds, mammals and so much more! When traveling this holiday season, remember to properly dispose of your Thanksgiving food waste so it doesn’t become a hazard along our roadways and harm the wildlife there.

Our friends at the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency have a Virtual Learning Center where you can explore these animals. You can even download a coloring book to share with your family this holiday season.

We Give Thanks to YOU, the People of Tennessee

Most of all, this holiday season, we give thanks to the citizens of Tennessee for their continued support of our litter prevention program, Nobody Trashes Tennessee! We couldn’t do it without you. Happy Thanksgiving.