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Managing Growth’s Externalities Is the Key To Securing Rockland’s Future Character
By Suzanne Mitchell
If you live in Rockland County, you’ve likely witnessed the steady population growth as more and more people move into our vibrant and diverse community. While growth is inevitable, it must be managed responsibly. As Rockland County is in the throes of updating the county’s Comprehensive Plan “Envision Rockland”, we must consider how increasing density impacts the essential services that safeguard our health, safety, and well-being—services such as emergency volunteer response, sewage treatment, trash collection, traffic infrastructure, and more.
Left unmanaged, this growth will threaten the very character of our community and diminish the quality of life in a county that has long been known as a peaceful, safe, and picturesque place to live.
As a 33-year resident of Rockland County and the Director of ROSA 4 Rockland, I understand that every home was once built on open land. Growth is a natural part of a thriving community. At ROSA, our mission is to advocate for environmental preservation and sustainable development—and today, we must shine a light on one of the most visible and preventable consequences of unmanaged growth: litter.
We all see it—trash lining our roadways, caught in tree branches, and scattered across our neighborhoods. But it’s more than just unsightly. Litter has real, harmful impacts:
- It clogs storm drains, contributing to localized flooding.
- It contaminates waterways and harms estuaries and wetlands.
- It threatens our aquifers—the critical water supply we all rely on.
It looks awful. It is awful. And it can be fixed.
How can we, as residents, make a difference?
- Pick it up. Even if you didn’t drop it.
- Look beyond your fence line. If there’s debris near your property, remove it.
- Set the tone. Research in environmental psychology shows that clean, well-maintained spaces influence behavior. When an area looks cared for, people are less likely to litter. This is known as social priming—where the environment itself encourages responsible behavior.
But residents can’t—and shouldn’t—do this alone. We call on our municipalities—Towns, Villages, the County, and the State—to act. Each level of government is responsible for the roadways under its control. High-traffic, high-speed, and winding roads are not safe for citizen clean-up. These areas require professional crews and routine maintenance.
I know this firsthand. I’ve gone out onto Route 202 with the intention of removing trash, only to quickly retreat as fast-moving vehicles and trucks brushed past me. It’s simply too dangerous. Without the support of our local and state agencies, these roads will continue to accumulate litter, degrading our landscape and putting our environment—and our residents—at risk.
Let’s urge our Town Supervisors, County Executive, and State representatives to prioritize this issue—not just with seasonal clean-up events, but with a permanent, proactive maintenance plan that includes code enforcement and debris removal on a regular basis.
There is also a role for the business community to step in: Strip mall owners, landlords, developers, and condominium associations need to fulfil their responsibility to maintain their sites.
See for yourself.
This video was recorded on a four-mile stretch of Route 202 (between Route 306 and Viola Road), taken on April 28, 2025. Over 200 photos of roadside debris were captured before spring vegetation began to obscure the trash that still remains. You’ll see everything from plastic bags to household waste to fully filled garbage sacks. It’s shocking—and it’s preventable.
Let’s protect the place we call home. Be a steward of the land. Help clean what you can. And just as importantly, ask your elected officials to step up and commit to sustained, organized action. Together, we can clean up our community—and preserve the Rockland we love for generations to come.
