So if you took the old tires with you the handling fee wouldn't apply? I still say that the program isn't viable if dealers are needing to charge an additional amount for handling.
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Litter, garbage and trash
- Thread starter Glenn MacGrady
- Start date
I have found that most campsites have been left quite clean, however, I have certainly come upon campsites that have been strewn with garbage. Usually we carry a bag for our own garbage and we have often cleaned up campsites where garbage has been left behind. Sometimes the amount of garbage overwhelms our ability to haul it all out so we take what we can. Depending of location and fire bans, we have, at times, started a big fire to burn garbage and reduce the volume so that we can handle it - maybe not the most environmentally friendly way of cleaning up.
Generally, I have found that more garbage is left behind at sites that are easy to access. Sites that are accessible by motorized vehicles often seem to have the most garbage.
Generally, I have found that more garbage is left behind at sites that are easy to access. Sites that are accessible by motorized vehicles often seem to have the most garbage.
no,it just led to an extra profit stream for the garages...
I spend my time on the Chesapeake, Little Tupper/Low's/Lila/Long outside Long Lake, NY, or the St Regis Canoe Wilderness (and Floodwood).
I have filled my entire canoe with garbage during a spring cleanup (just me, tired of it, not sponsored) of my little estuary of the Chesapeake... The result was several months of nicer scenery... but I get back up pretty far in some areas, and most of the garbage is floating bottles, driven by wind or tide, not necessarily local paddlers littering.
The areas around Long Lake are generally clean enough... if I find something in a campsite, I tend to burn my own trash every night anyway, pretty much immediately upon turning the cookfire embers into the evening campfire, giving things a long time to burn properly. But it's never been all that bad.
The St Regis and Floodwood tend to stay clean(er) for some reason, and it's probably just 'better people'... folks who love the wilderness and keep it cleaner as a result... doesn't mean there isn't any trash, just that there's definitely less. Occasionally though, you find a mess... once found a lean-to fireplace pit full of corn husks and silk... old tarps on another site... booze bottles that were just too heavy to carry out... and beer cans... There, I will burn what I can, and sometimes I'll carry out cans or bottles if my load is light enough.
I have filled my entire canoe with garbage during a spring cleanup (just me, tired of it, not sponsored) of my little estuary of the Chesapeake... The result was several months of nicer scenery... but I get back up pretty far in some areas, and most of the garbage is floating bottles, driven by wind or tide, not necessarily local paddlers littering.
The areas around Long Lake are generally clean enough... if I find something in a campsite, I tend to burn my own trash every night anyway, pretty much immediately upon turning the cookfire embers into the evening campfire, giving things a long time to burn properly. But it's never been all that bad.
The St Regis and Floodwood tend to stay clean(er) for some reason, and it's probably just 'better people'... folks who love the wilderness and keep it cleaner as a result... doesn't mean there isn't any trash, just that there's definitely less. Occasionally though, you find a mess... once found a lean-to fireplace pit full of corn husks and silk... old tarps on another site... booze bottles that were just too heavy to carry out... and beer cans... There, I will burn what I can, and sometimes I'll carry out cans or bottles if my load is light enough.
The Friends of Wabakimi is currently fund raising for the second legacy trash cleanup in the park. The first cleanup covered the cost of flying out abandoned or wrecked boats which park crews gathered and sawed up.
I have traveled extensively in the greater Wabakimi area for 13 years and the area is littered with abandoned and destroyed fishing boats. Several times we have also encountered caches of abandoned outboard motors.
I have traveled extensively in the greater Wabakimi area for 13 years and the area is littered with abandoned and destroyed fishing boats. Several times we have also encountered caches of abandoned outboard motors.
I was pleasantly surprised on my 3 trips to the BWCA this summer and found almost no trash on portages or at campsites, a complete reversal to what it was during the pandemic.
I participated in two river clean ups this Summer, one almost a week long
Project AWARE.
Iowa Project AWARE totals Totals on the right of screen.
Webster county river clean up.
the other a one day clean up.
Here are the results of the one day clean up this Fall. Too close to home ( 20 miles away ).
I'm totally ashamed of Iowans, and how they treat our rivers !
Many need to have their Noses rubbed into the river beds, like you would train a puppy, when they pee on the carpet !
It's pure disgusting !
I hope the rivers local to all of you are in better shape than mine !
Jim
Project AWARE.
Iowa Project AWARE totals Totals on the right of screen.
Webster county river clean up.
the other a one day clean up.
Here are the results of the one day clean up this Fall. Too close to home ( 20 miles away ).
I'm totally ashamed of Iowans, and how they treat our rivers !
Many need to have their Noses rubbed into the river beds, like you would train a puppy, when they pee on the carpet !
It's pure disgusting !
I hope the rivers local to all of you are in better shape than mine !
Jim
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Only encountered trash at one campsite on Little Long Pond in the St. Regis Canoe Area. The site on Clamshell Pond had a couple of tarps left behind, but they were neatly folded and stashed away from the main site. I could do, however, with fewer fireplace grilles... lots of sites have many of these.
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It used to be that many of the boat launches, both formal & informal, on the upper Susquehanna would be strewn with garbage, bottles and evidence of numerous parties. That pretty much changed as soon as the sites started playing host to water monitors. The program is an initiative between SUNY Oneonta's Biological Field Station in Cooperstown and other environmental groups. It's an attempt to keep invasive species out of the river but it also seems to have helped enormously with the litter problem. I used to always pick up garbage and now there is little left behind. Having a set of eyes on location seems to be the trick. Unfortunately, a program like this isn't financially feasible to duplicate in many other locations.
That's all for now. Take care and until next time...be well.
snapper
That's all for now. Take care and until next time...be well.
snapper
Litter has compounded with population around here. The people who care try to stay on top of it, but it’s a losing battle. The most immediate threat to rivers here is sewage, septic leaching, industrial and agricultural effluent. The “Wild and Scenic River” around here has the smell of sewage and phosphates with a plant every few miles. Like urban violence, litter grows exponentially with population.
Tires do indeed multiply like rabbits. In Missouri there's a nonprofit devoted to cleaning up the big river and educating people about it. They're the ones that put on the MR 340 race.
riverrelief.org
Closer to home I once came upon a Ski-Doo in Sunkhaze Stream when I was paddling in early spring. I expect it was a thin ice error rather than intentional littering, but with the fuel leaking freely in a small stream it was quite a mess. The area was in Sunkhaze Meadows National Wildlife Refuge, so I got in touch with the refuge manager.
MO River Relief - Missouri River Relief
Missouri River Relief was founded to engage individuals and communities along the Missouri River in the exploration, enjoyment, restoration and care of the river through education, stewardship, and recreation.
riverrelief.org
Closer to home I once came upon a Ski-Doo in Sunkhaze Stream when I was paddling in early spring. I expect it was a thin ice error rather than intentional littering, but with the fuel leaking freely in a small stream it was quite a mess. The area was in Sunkhaze Meadows National Wildlife Refuge, so I got in touch with the refuge manager.
The Yukon River races (the YRQ and the Y1K) begin in Whitehorse YT, where the river initially travel some 30 miles downstream before widening to become 35 mile long, 3-5 mile wide Lake Laberge. For safety, racers are required to remain within 200 meters of the eastern shore of the famous waterway "on the marge of Lake 'Labarge'". We are always amazed at the amount of garbage, especially scrap tires visible on the gravel shoreline in an otherwise pristine looking wilderness. 35 miles later it narrows to become a fast flowing winding river again through steep canyons (where it becomes locally called "The 30mile"). We are told that the garbage and tires are likely dumped on the frozen river ice during the winter, and are carried during spring breakup to the lake, where westerly winds blow it all to the eastern shore. Beyond there we noted only minimal garbage at our primitive campsites
Back closer to home, there is a long standing Boy Scout Adirondack resident summer camp based on Lows Lake/Bog River Flow. Lows is a popular wilderness no-motors lake reserved for paddlers, with the exception of the scout camp which is allowed limited motor boat use. At the beginning of every paddling season, the scout adult staff and boys organize a visit to each of the primitive 39 designated campsites. They usually return with a large number of garbage bags full. I am thankful because a few weeks later I participate as an instructor of a guide certification training program there. Most of the designated campsites tend to appear relatively clean with few exceptions from recent slob paddlers. Although as a general personal preference I normally LNT bush camp in even more primitive sites well away from the lake and designated sites.
Back closer to home, there is a long standing Boy Scout Adirondack resident summer camp based on Lows Lake/Bog River Flow. Lows is a popular wilderness no-motors lake reserved for paddlers, with the exception of the scout camp which is allowed limited motor boat use. At the beginning of every paddling season, the scout adult staff and boys organize a visit to each of the primitive 39 designated campsites. They usually return with a large number of garbage bags full. I am thankful because a few weeks later I participate as an instructor of a guide certification training program there. Most of the designated campsites tend to appear relatively clean with few exceptions from recent slob paddlers. Although as a general personal preference I normally LNT bush camp in even more primitive sites well away from the lake and designated sites.
Add sewage to the list. Ohio’s “Wild” rivers and reservoirs are 80% effluent. Yeah, we have mountains of litter and junk (appliances and tires abound), but sewage can’t be fixed, will only get worse as population grows. Even Lake Superior is not immune to the effects of human waste and urban runoff.
Litter can be picked up, strained, bulldozed into landfills. Human waste is a permanent part of streams wherever people exist. Who wants to paddle where you can’t even swim safely?
Farm runoff is the main threat to Wisconsin streams. Litter is there, but requires a closer look than in Ohio watersheds. Cabin proliferation is having real impacts on lake water quality, but is still a seasonal problem.
Litter can be picked up, strained, bulldozed into landfills. Human waste is a permanent part of streams wherever people exist. Who wants to paddle where you can’t even swim safely?
Farm runoff is the main threat to Wisconsin streams. Litter is there, but requires a closer look than in Ohio watersheds. Cabin proliferation is having real impacts on lake water quality, but is still a seasonal problem.
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I agree that the ADK's stay pretty clean. On my annual trip to Little Tupper, site 11 if I can get it, as we return to the put in I like to track along the west shore. Long distance of perfect level sand in about 1 foot of water. Very nice walk along that shore. In 20 years Chick and I have only found 2 small pieces of trash as we walked. Makes me smile.
I have posted this before, but when I used to fish the Salmon River in NY there was about a 1/4 mile walk back to a nice hole to fish.
Some stupid f@&%ing a$@*%#&+ carried a large pizza - in the box - back to the hole. Then, when they left, the BOX remained. I literally had no idea people could be so inconsiderate - read stupid - and pretend to be an outdoorsman.
This stuff ALWAYS bring back these 2 thoughts -
"There is right and wrong, and EVERYBODY knows the difference." Think it was Ted Nugent. I had a boss years ago who used to say that in life, you will find that 50% of the people you meet have no idea WTF they are doing. Thought it was just a throwaway line back then, but now in my 60's, I have found this to be surprisingly accurate.
I am guessing that we, along with similarly minded individuals will have to be the stewards of the world as best we can.
Sometimes people suck. We all probably spend too much time with maps, electronic or otherwise. Ton's of islands out there. Maybe we need a penal colony for litterbugs.
I have posted this before, but when I used to fish the Salmon River in NY there was about a 1/4 mile walk back to a nice hole to fish.
Some stupid f@&%ing a$@*%#&+ carried a large pizza - in the box - back to the hole. Then, when they left, the BOX remained. I literally had no idea people could be so inconsiderate - read stupid - and pretend to be an outdoorsman.
This stuff ALWAYS bring back these 2 thoughts -
"There is right and wrong, and EVERYBODY knows the difference." Think it was Ted Nugent. I had a boss years ago who used to say that in life, you will find that 50% of the people you meet have no idea WTF they are doing. Thought it was just a throwaway line back then, but now in my 60's, I have found this to be surprisingly accurate.
I am guessing that we, along with similarly minded individuals will have to be the stewards of the world as best we can.
Sometimes people suck. We all probably spend too much time with maps, electronic or otherwise. Ton's of islands out there. Maybe we need a penal colony for litterbugs.
People is pigs. I can’t understand why “outdoorsmen” choose to spoil the very places they use. The stack of beer cans and worm buckets was 3-1/2 feet tall, 12’ long at one landing I stopped using. I know many people care about the natural world they live in, but they are VASTLY outnumbered, and it won’t get any better people. My hope is that Canadians see what America has done to its rivers and keeps theirs wild and buffered from growing population.
I have my doubts, several years ago we did a weekend cleanup on a local river, we gathered enough that the the MTO filled 3 highway dump-trucks with the garbage, around 50,000 lbs
we also did a weekend cleanup in Algonquin that netted around 120 garbage bags full
The headless carcass of a deer floating in the Santa Fe River in Florida. I assume some hunters killed it, cut off the head, and then tossed it in the river.
On the road where I walk my dog, between corn fields on both sides, many tires are dumped. Upon examining the tires, mostly tractor tires cut in half and truck tires, I believe this is handiwork of a garage or someone employed therein. The farm owner cleans them up when they appear, along with furniture and scrap building materials.
The head worthless for mounting like that. Gotta cape it. Dumb hick poachers.
That deer may have been poached or it might have died of natural causes or been the casualty of a legal hunt. Years ago while paddling the Lehigh River on a busy WW weekend I spotted a dead dear with an impressive rack. With an almost constant stream of rafters floating by I stealthily cut off the head and stashed it in my boat, not knowing if this was legal or not. I did assume at the time that anyone finding that headless deer would think it was poached.
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