Green Towson Alliance has been organizing stream cleanups of local streams and tributaries of the Herring Run and the Jone Falls since it was founded in 2015. This April, 127 volunteers (including 17 children) cleaned trash out of the stream beds and banks and from the alleys and storm drains that funnel trash into the streams. At some sites, invasive English Ivy was cut from the trees and garlic mustard was pulled out.
In all, teams at 8 locations collected 109 bags of trash and recyclables, and 16 bags of invasive weeds. In addition, unusual items included a child’s tricycle, a purse filled with with makeup, a coat, a case of iced tea, a shopping cart, and even a street sign.
Girl Scouts helped at the cleanup at Overlook Park. Grace Fellowship Church volunteers helped at Loch Ridge, and Anneslie community members volunteered at Ashlar Hills near Taylor Ave. Students from two area high schools, and volunteers from the Bykota Senior Center removed 5 big bags of trash and 1 big bag of recyclable beverage containers from the stream ravine at the Loch Raven Library.
Students from Towson University’s “Impact TU” event volunteered, including from the National Residence Hall Honorary, Club Lacrosse, Tau Beta Sigma Sorority, and others. Thank you to Shannon Creek for coordinating transportation and supplies for the students.
County Councilman Mike Ertel helped at 2 sites along the Herring Run – Thank you, Councilman!
Thank you to all the Site Leaders who provided leadership at their locations: Christine Accardo, Adreon Hubbard, Barbara Lewis, Beth Miller, Lilly Richardson, Allison Schultz, Mike Stopford, Diane Topper, and Berni Kroll. Thank you to Roger and Jane Gookin for providing refreshments for the team at Radebaugh Park.
Very few plastic bags were found, a great improvement from the earlier years when they were ubiquitous. Many beverage containers were picked up, including glass and plastic bottles and aluminum cans, showing the need to incentivize people to re-use and recycle.
Does a stream in your neighborhood need help, or would you like to volunteer next year? Please let us know by contacting GTA members Carol Newill or Beth Miller at greentowsonalliance@gmail.com.
Thanks to Dr. Carol Newill for this summary of our stream cleanups.