Hannah’s Landing Project

Back in late February, after a heavy rainfall, I went to check on the Hwy 301 boat ramp before  a cleanup and noticed four fifty-five gallon blue drums just off the ramp stuck in bushes in the river.

This inspired an idea. Compared to the surrounding counties, Bulloch County’s boat ramps are underserved. There is typically a high amount of trash usually present all over the boat ramp sites that are underbuilt or a trashcan is absent. For this project, I placed trash cans at the boat ramps. The cans are managed by myself and local volunteers, being emptied on a monthly basis. The hope is that the implementation of the trash cans at these will help make a difference in the overall appearance and quality at each of these sites.

I was able to retrieve all of discarded blue barrels them and clean them for use and I sourced additional one from a local business who buys and resells old barrels from a food processing plant. I then began repurposing them.First, using an electric drill, I made a hole near the top just below the edge of the lid. Then I used a jigsaw with a PVC blade to cut the lid off the rest of the barrel. From there, I drilled five holes with a quarter inch drill bit to help make the trash can predator-proof and more accessible for people. There are additional holes on the bottoms of the trash cans as well for drainage when it rains.

The barrels have the logos of Georgia Southern University (where I’m enrolled) and Ogeechee Riverkeeper (who I’m doing the practicum project with). The goals are to reduce the amount of litter entering the waterways via the human population from boat ramps and to make people more aware of their social responsibility in the outdoors.

-HD

ORK partners with Statesboro, KSSB to install litter trap

CORRECTION: A photo was mistakenly shared in connection with this story. The image depicted a boom-style litter trap that was constructed and installed by WATERGOAT, while the litter trap in the story was purchased from another provider. The image was removed from this site and social media after its origin was identified. ORK regrets the error.

The image below is new and is from the installation at Little Lotts Creek on October 4, 2020.


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
09/30/20

Ogeechee Riverkeeper
Contact: Meaghan Gerard

Communications and Administrative Director
meaghan@ogeecheeriverkeeper.org

Keep Statesboro-Bulloch Beautiful
Contact: Amanda Clements
KSBB Coordinator

amanda.clements@statesboroga.gov

OGEECHEE RIVERKEEPER PARTNERS WITH CITY OF STATESBORO, KEEP STATESBORO-BULLOCH BEAUTIFUL TO INSTALL A LITTER TRAP
Little Lotts Creek location aims to be the first in an expanding program

Ogeechee Riverkeeper (ORK) has partnered with the City of Statesboro and Keep Statesboro-Bulloch Beautiful (KSBB) to help curb litter pollution in Little Lotts Creek. ORK researched litter trap technology and will install a ‘boom’ style device to catch litter. In collaboration with officials from the City of Statesboro, an initial site was chosen in Little Lotts Creek.

The City of Statesboro covered the cost to purchase the ‘boom’ litter trap, which uses a string of floats and a net to capture pieces of litter. ORK and KSBB will install the trap in October and coordinate regular pickups of trash cleared out of the trap. Items that can be recycled or repurposed will be collected by Boro Recycling. Other stakeholders for the project include community members with an interest in curbing litter and pollution.

Installation of litter trap, October 4, 2020

“We hope this will be the first of many similar traps in Statesboro, Bulloch and beyond,” says Damon Mullis, executive director and riverkeeper at Ogeechee Riverkeeper. “And we will use this project to educate the public about how to reduce litter in our waterways, and how litter affects the health of our watershed.”

“The City has been looking for ways to continue partnering with Ogeechee Riverkeeper on a stream clean project,” said John Washington, city engineer, “and this was a very viable venture. If successful, this may lead to other partnerships throughout the City.”

A media advisory with details about installation will be distributed in early October.

About Ogeechee Riverkeeper: Ogeechee Riverkeeper 501(c)(3) works to protect, preserve, and improve the water quality of the Ogeechee River basin, which includes all of the streams flowing out to Ossabaw Sound and St. Catherine’s Sound. At 245 miles long, the Ogeechee River system drains more than 5,000 square miles of land. More at ogeecheeriverkeeper.org.

About Keep Statesboro-Bulloch Beautiful: Keep Statesboro-Bulloch Beautiful is an affiliate of Keep America Beautiful and the Keep Georgia Beautiful Foundation. Our goal is to educate and empower citizens and businesses with the resources needed to facilitate litter prevention, beautification, and community greening within the city of Statesboro and surrounding areas. More information can be found at keepstatesborobullochbeautiful.org.

Images and interviews available upon request.

Watch a time lapse video of the installation.