Another hot day and another walk by a stream in Beltzville State Park. I have been to the Sawmill Trail numerous times for clean-ups and there is always trash to be found. On this trip I set out to find the source. Many items I have found here in the past are large and not things hikers would carry in just to dump in the stream. I know some items come down from Pohopoco Drive, but there is a pretty good vegetative buffer from that roadway. I thought that the turnpike might be a source of the trash so the goal of the day was to make it to the turnpike and see what if anything was there.
This photo has nothing to do with the trash clean-up and isn't really even a good shot of the dam. This was however the coolest place to stand on this hot day. Cold air seemed to emanate from the falls. I took several minutes taking it all in before moving on up stream.
Picked through some debris piles and pulled out bottles and other small plastics. Then I came across these items. The piece of an air conditioner especially is not something normally found in this type of setting in a state park.
Just where are these items coming from?
I ventured through this first tunnel where Pohopoco Drive runs over the stream. Not far on the other side I could see the turnpike and a run coming down from it full of trash.
I found at least one of the sources where much of the trash is coming from on the stream. I think that people have a perception that trash thrown on the side of the road is picked up by crews and that it doesn't matter much. In many cases this is where it ends up. Rain water washes it down into our streams and rivers. Our roadways could be designed with catches so this is prevented, but those catches would have to be maintained. Here the fence to a certain degree did act as a catch, now it is busted out and new items coming down just run right over the top. I took out what I could and this is what I ended up with...
This topped off my pack and filled up the extra bag I had along. I would not be surprised if there is a similar run on the other side of the turnpike tunnel. With my bags full I decided not to venture any further and returned back to my car.
Every little piece dropped on a trailside, thrown out a window or just forgotten when placed down does have an impact on our environment. We all need to do more to properly dispose of our waste. A small section of stream in any of our state parks should not have this much trash. I hope those of you that read this blog see the problems and help come up with solutions!
You too can help with taking out the trash! If you get out hiking take a grocery bag with you, give it a second use and fill it with trash while you are out! Every bit helps. You can also help contributing to this project here: Help Fund Taking Out the Trash
Like this project? Like it on Facebook: Taking Out the Trash in Eastern PA
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