This coming weekend my family will join over 1,000 volunteers to find trash in and around the White River in Hamilton County. We have been participating in the White River Clean Up for almost 10 years. We started when my daughter was in Girl Scouts and now we work with the local Boy Scouts. Last year we found some big items... including tires. Participating in the White River Clean Up is a great opportunity to work along side our children in our local communities.
Steve Schwartz, founder of White River Rescue and owner of Schwartz's Bait and Tackle on the White River in Noblesville, has a better idea than most people on the health of the White River. Steve believes we have greatly improved the White River by making garbage dumping unacceptable. However, Tim Stottlemyer with Noblesville's Wastewater Utility feels that the next challenge deals more with problems that cannot be seen. Rain washes unseen soaps and harmful chemicals into streets and storm drains and then into our streams and local waterways. These unseen chemicals are not only an issue for the fish and wild life but also the health of everyone who enjoys the recreation on the White River and other local waterways.
If you would like to come out to help, organizers are meeting at the Moose Lodge at 950 Field Drive in Noblesville and hours are from 9 am to 3 pm. If you cannot help, I hope you will make safe choices when buying home care products and reduce chemicals in and around your home.
Most importantly, responsibly dispose of unwanted chemicals... including household cleaning products, pesticides, oil and old paint at the Household Hazardous Waste Center at 1717 Pleasant St., Noblesville.
