BELLBROOK — Quiz time.
What no longer has eight tires, a vacuum cleaner, a medallion of a Greek goddess, tons of plastic, and a sled?
If you guessed the Little Miami River, you are correct.
Thanks to the efforts of the Little Miami River Kleeners, the Little Miami Watershed Network, and around 170 residents, the LMR is now devoid of the aforementioned and other unwanted items totalling more than a ton of trash. It was all collected during the annual river cleanup that took on a do-it-yourself format due to the coronavirus.
Normally a one-day event, the clean-up was held between June 8-20 to allow participants to keep social distance. Organizers were not sure what to expect, but they were happy with the results.
“It did turn out to be a great event,” said former Ohio First Lady Hope Taft, who co-founded the Little Miami River Kleeners.
Other items pulled out of the river from John Bryan State Park to Morrow include Styrofoam, bottles, cans, folding chairs, an Ohio State cooler, clothes, flip flops and shoes. A bird trapped in a fishing line was also rescued.
“The river is getting lots of use this year with paddlers of all experiences,” Taft said. “We hope they will help to maintain our efforts by leaving no trace of their visit and take their trash with them.”
Taft also said that the Little Miami River Kleeners merged into the Little Miami Watershed Network, of which she is now the chair.
The network will continue to organize a spring and fall cleanup, place medallions on storm drains, provide a speakers bureau, work on obtaining the economic value of the upper river and host the Trailblazer Adventure, according to Taft.
For more information visit www.littlemiamiwatershednetwork.org.
