Co-Written by Jonathan Birek
For 34 years, the Western Carolina community has banded together to help clean up the Tuckasegee River.
On the morning of Saturday, April 14, close to a thousand volunteers signed up to partake in the Tuck River Clean Up, even though there was rain in the forecast. Luckily, it turned out to be a clear day, which contributed to the higher attendance from last year’s 600 participants, when it was cold and rainy.
Registration opened at 10 a.m. but volunteers were there as early as 6 a.m. The line stretched from the front of the AK Hinds University Center to the end of the Central Plaza. Here you can see some of the participants’ thoughts on the cleanup.
Video by Jonathan Birek
Once the participants returned from their trip the trash they collected is picked up by Republic Services and taken to the dump. Assistant Director of Outdoor Programs, Kay Tufts, explains the problem of simply throwing everything away.
“A majority of what we are throwing away is recyclables, i.e. tires, glass and plastic water bottles. Recycling centers will not accept the recyclable materials because it is contaminated with river sediment…It is not feasible for these items to be cleaned and then processed for recycling. The cost is too high. It is my hope that this can be addressed in the future, not just for Tuck Clean Up, but in the big picture of waste management.”
Students at Western Carolina share this sentiment and want to do whatever they can to help. There is also a fun atmosphere surrounding the cleanup.
“It’s really cool how many people did it, it was such a beautiful day and the fact that even though there was a lot of waiting, people didn’t leave early, they stayed. And it wasn’t just because there was free food or whatever, people really seemed to care,” WCU student, Abby Butler, said.
