Thanks Tons, Columbians!
An estimated 400 volunteers turned out on the morning of October 16 for the 7th Annual Hinkson Clean Sweep in Columbia, Missouri, nearly doubling last year's turnout.
"The Clean Sweep is proof that if you organize it, people will show up in droves," says Scott Dye, a Columbia resident and director of the Sierra Club's Water Sentinels Program, who helped organize the event. "It's just one of the many reasons I'm proud to call Columbia my home." That's Dye below with Amy Meier of the Missouri Stream Team, one of the event's co-sponsors.
Photo by Lisa Rohmiller
Volunteers convened at half a dozen sites along the creek, which runs just south of downtown Columbia and the University of Missouri. Everyone was given two bright red garbage bags to fill up, and many people ended up asking for more bags.
Scouring the stream banks and wading through the creek's shallows, participants removed 2.5 tons of trash and more than a dozen tires over the course of the 2-hour cleanup.
The City of Columbia and the University of Missouri have partnered on the Hinkson Creek Trail project to construct and maintain several miles of trail connecting a series of local parks and recreation areas. As part of the project, the city built two new iron bridges spanning the creek, designed to rust like the old railroad bridges along the Missouri River.
Photo courtesy of the City of Columbia
The annual Hinkson Clean Sweep is co-sponsored by the City of Columbia, the Sierra Club, Boone County, the University of Missouri, the Missouri Stream Team, the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, and local business partners, which this year included Shotgun Pete's BBQ Shack and the Firestone Complete Auto Care store.
Learn more about how you can get involved with a Water Sentinels project near you.
