On Saturday, September 29, twenty volunteers combed the Connecticut River bank, the Windsor Locks Canal trail and the surrounding area for litter and other unsightly rubbish. Half the group were members of the Suffield High School Interact club. Others were members of the Friends of the Windsor Locks Canal, a few Cub Scouts and several other volunteers. The crew worked for three hours.
The project was coordinated by the Friends under the auspices of the Connecticut River Conservancy’s Source to Sea Clean-Up program. “We greatly appreciate all the folks who helped,” said Friends’ secretary, Karen Carlson.
“Due to high, rapidly flowing water, our clean-up was not as thorough as usual,” comments Carlson. However, the students were able to accumulate ten bags of recyclables and trash. The most predominant items were plastic, primarily nip bottles. The most awkward item was a 25-ft. length of hose. Carlson disclosed that “we will try and hold another clean-up in the spring when the vegetation is minimal and debris is more easily seen. Of course, the river will have to cooperate and be lower and calmer.”
Due to the Friends’ newly acquired John Deere utility vehicle, miles of terrain and waterfront were patrolled. The vehicle was purchased with a grant from the Amiel P. Zak Public Service Fund at the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving. The Zak Fund has been very generous over the years and makes it possible for the Friends to make capital expenditures otherwise out of the group’s reach.