Cleanup efforts in Harlan County paid off in the form of three grants Friday.

Eastern Kentucky PRIDE, an acronym for Personal Responsibility In a Desirable Environment, awarded grants to three Harlan County organizations for cleanup work.

The Harlan County Fiscal Court received $46,087 to clean up 25 illegal dumps in the county. The city of Evarts received $15,000 to dispose of trash collected during the city's 2004 PRIDE Spring Cleanup project.

The Tri-Cities Heritage Development Corporation received $11,900 to dispose of trash collected during fall and spring cleanup campaigns in Cumberland, Benham and Lynch.

The PRIDE Community Grant program provides up to $50,000 to counties, cities and other organizations for environmental improvement projects. Recipients are required to match the grant with funding worth at least 10 percent of the grant amount.

Congressman Hal Rogers, who secured the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration funding that makes PRIDE grants possible, praised county leaders for their cleanup efforts.

"I commend officials and community leaders in Harlan County for taking the initiative to clean up this area. PRIDE is based on a partnership that links volunteers with the resources of local, state and federal governments. Each partner has to do their share so we can meet our goal of restoring the region's natural beauty," he said.

In all, PRIDE has awarded 55 grants this year, totaling more than $1.9 million dollars. Since its inception in 1997, the organization has awarded 438 grants totaling more than $11.4 million dollars.