As summertime draws to a close, volunteers from several nonprofits and local businesses came together on Thursday to clean Pennsylvania’s 2023 River of the Year.
Organized by the Endless Mountains Heritage Region and Rail Trail Council of NEPA, volunteers collected plastic, glass bottles, and even boating parts from the award-winning North Branch of the Susquehanna. Rail Trail Council’s Executive Director Lynn Conrad was pleased with what she found alongside the river.
“We have been cleaning up the trail for years and years and years, but now it’s gated. Cars can’t get up there, so [there’s] less trash,” Conrad said.
While the team did find some metal scraps and a tire or two, Conrad said that what they found on Thursday pales in comparison to previous years’ hauls.
“Usually it was like tires and appliances…so it’s mostly small stuff [being found nowadays]. So, I’d say that we’re doing pretty good,” said Conrad.
DT Midstream’s Principal Environmental Engineer Mike Spangenberg talked about last year’s cleanup event where teams removed over 500 waterlogged and muddy tires from a dumping site. He stressed that having a large team of volunteers makes a world of difference.
“We can utilize all of our guys there in one spot and kind of really hit it hard, and clear a lot of tires and old junk,” said Spangenberg.
Thursday’s volunteers had several boats and canoes out on the river alongside ground teams working on the D&H Rail Trail.
