A U.S. Army Soldier picks up trash during an organized cleanup Dec. 16, 2016 at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait. The cleanup, hosted by Area Support Group - Kuwait, consisted of hundreds of volunteers collecting loose trash across the post and separating recycl...

Volunteers carry their trash to the disposal point during an organized cleanup Dec. 16, 2016 at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait. The cleanup, hosted by Area Support Group - Kuwait, consisted of hundreds of volunteers collecting loose trash across the post and s...

Volunteers pick up trash during an organized cleanup, Operation Flying Debris, on Dec. 16, 2016 at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait. Hundreds of volunteers came together to participate in the cleanup and collected over fifty bags of trash and recyclable material...

A U.S. Army Soldier picks up trash during an organized cleanup Dec. 16, 2016 at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait. Hundreds of volunteers came together to participate in the cleanup and collected over fifty bags of trash and recyclable material. (U.S. Army photo ...

Volunteers pick up trash during an organized cleanup, Operation Flying Debris, on Dec. 16, 2016 at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait. The cleanup, hosted by Area Support Group - Kuwait, included service members and civilians who collected over fifty bags of trash...

Volunteers put their trash in a truck to be properly disposed of during an organized cleanup Dec. 16, 2016 at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait. The cleanup, dubbed Operation Flying Debris, consisted of hundreds of volunteers collecting loose trash across the pos...

Hundreds of deployed troops and U.S. civilians picked up trash littering Camp Arifjan, Kuwait and contributed to a cleaner work environment during an organized cleanup Dec. 16.

Area Support Group -- Kuwait hosted the cleanup, dubbed Operation Flying Debris by Command Sgt. Maj. Scott I. Anderson, the senior enlisted leader of the unit, with the intent of taking initiative and care of our surroundings here.

"The motive behind this was the new commanding officer and the CSM wanted people to have ownership of this base," said Master Sgt. Marvin Curtis, a cleanup coordinator and the resiliency noncommissioned officer in charge with the 1st Sustainment Command (Theater). "We need to take pride and ownership of what we do on this post and throughout the Middle East."

The cleanup also included over 50 civilian volunteers from the Mormon Helping Hands organization. The organization provided troops and other volunteers with t-shirts as participation awards.

"We were blessed to have U.S. citizens come and help a U.S. military installation pick up," Curtis said. "We got a lot of trash picked up. We set a good example and maybe a pace for something we could do semi-annually. I think everyone here had a good time."

Operation Flying Debris' mission wasn't just about disposing of trash. Soldiers separated recyclable materials from the waste they found during the cleanup.

Curtis said recycling at Camp Arifjan not only helps the environment, but also helps pay for extracurricular activities for Soldiers such as Morale and Welfare Recreation events and tours in Kuwait City, which provide Soldiers with an opportunity to increase their cultural awareness.

"It was fun to get many, many bags of trash up and recycled items out," he said.

Volunteers joked, laughed and socialized with one another during the cleanup.

"A job like picking up trash is always better when you have your buddies also doing the task," said 1st Lt. Will Keyes, a volunteer at the event with USARCENT. "It can make a tedious chore actually fun."

Keyes said he hopes his fellow Soldiers will continue to fulfill their responsibility to protect the environment by participating in future cleanups.

"This is where we live and work," he said. "It's important to respect the property and keep everything clean. It comes down to responsibility for what we do."