By Johnny Strawn, Guest Columnist
Mainspring Conservation Trust and Western North Carolina Pacesetters recently held our seventh annual cleanup of the Valley River.
We had around 30 volunteers and pulled out 27 tires and more than 1,000 pounds of trash. We work on a new section of the river each year, and you can start to see an improvement.
I want to congratulate these groups on the effort put forth on this cleanup. It is hard work and needs to be commended.
However, the real reason for this letter is to comment on the cleanup. I strongly believe our rivers and waterways are very slowly improving and becoming cleaner. Because of the effort of many groups and individuals, there is less sediment, pollutants and trash in the Valley River and other surrounding rivers.
Nonprofit groups such as Mainspring, Hiawassee River Watershed Coalition
(now MountainTrue), Pacesetters and
others have worked hard to improve our waterways. Many local farmers have incorporated filter strips along stream edges and fenced out cattle from streams and rivers. I feel there is a consciousness to improve and keep our rivers and stream clean, except for a few.
I kayaked down the river a few days before our cleanup to scout what and where the cleanup was needed. Along Fairview Road, on a section of the river that had previously been worked, someone recently dumped about 20 tires into the river.
I guess they didn’t want to pay the used tire disposal fee. Getting tires out of a river is not easy work. At least we got them out before they got embedded into the sand and sediment.
A dead cow along the Murphy River Walk recently made news. It rotted in the river while efforts to figure out how and who could get it out. Makes me wonder who owned the cow. I know cows get out of their fences occasionally, but there are still farms that do not fence their livestock from the river. We need cows fenced out of the rivers.
Two candidates for Cherokee County commissioner have expressed interest in increased use of our local rivers for recreation. One stated we need better public access. I obviously agree, as I frequently kayak our rivers.
We also need to continue to take care of our streams and rivers. Let’s make sure the actions of a few don’t do damage to our rivers and streams. Who wants to swim, kayak or fish around a bunch of tires or below a dead cow?
The writer is a resident of Cherokee County and longtime local volunteer.