1,013 pounds of trash removed from McDonald Creek by local organizations

On Sunday, October 11, the local organizations Tennessee Riverkeeper and Model Environment partnered with The Orion Amphitheater to remove 1,013 pounds of trash from McDonald Creek, a tributary of the Tennessee River. 

That is approximately one average adult horse worth of garbage picked up in a single day.

Twenty-six people attended and helped remove 42 bags of trash and two large tires, as well as various other kinds of large debris. The most common items found were styrofoam, plastic bottles, shopping bags and straws — none of which belong in our beautiful waterways.

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What is the Tennessee Riverkeeper organization?

Tennessee Riverkeeper is a nonprofit organization founded in 2009 by David Whiteside and Mark Martin. It was created in response to the TVA Kingston coal ash disaster, which occurred in December of 2008 and saw over 1 billion gallons of toxic material flood the landscape.

The organization helps protect the Tennessee and Cumberland River Basins by monitoring polluters and participating in cleanups like the one at McDonald Creek.

What is Model Environment?

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Model Environment is a female-owned small business that has had an established presence in Huntsville since 2015.

They offer services like roadside litter removal, waterway cleanups and cleanups around homeless encampments, all of which have contributed to the organization removing thousands of pounds of trash from Huntsville and other communities around the country.

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