The annual spring FOSC cleanup of Sligo Creek took place in various sections on April 8th and Earth Day, April 22nd. We joined the regional groups Alice Ferguson Foundation and Anacostia Watershed Society to make this a watershed-wide affair. Even though the weather did not fully cooperate, we held the events in full rain gear and had a decent showing and a lot of fun–some people came out more than once to help when we also held rain date cleanups on April 9th.

The combined results were impressive, and dedicated volunteers made a difference. Approximately 167 people came out to help in 12 sections of the Creek and we collected about 241 bags of trash and recyclables from the Creek and park. More than 1,000 pounds of heavy items, including a kitchen sink, cement birdbath, shopping carts, and construction debris, were also hauled out by volunteers. In addition, the “incredibly energetic” members of Brownie Troop #379 led by Pamela Trunk and Danielle Hermey filled 23 bags on April 18.

Local religious, school, and scout groups, including Journey’s Crossing from downtown Silver Spring and the Montgomery Blair High School Key Club, also helped FOSC to make our park a more beautiful and enjoyable place. Our heartfelt thanks to all of you who participated and to the Alice Ferguson Foundation and the Anacostia Watershed Society for their special supplies and give-aways.

Beth Rowe wins the dedication award for spending six hours mucking trash out of the Dennis Avenue stormwater ponds. Jennifer Kefer’s section 4 attracted the most participants: 30. Chris Victoria and his crew in Long Branch hauled out the kitchen sink! The main items found were overwhelmingly water bottles (e.g., Deer Park), beer bottles and cans (Budweiser and Heineken, particularly, Red Bull), and plastic bags, the bane of our environment. Some of the large items hauled out from behind the Kensington/Forest Glen Children’s Center by Megan Lang, Olivia Lindly, and Bruce Sidwell

Mike Smith led a postponed cleanup around Evans Parkway Park on a sunshine-filled Saturday, May 6th. Some volunteers, including the Muldoon family and Brian Patterson, focused on cleaning around the park, and others went down into the Bucknell Dr. tributary off Dennis. The steep banks make for poor access but the water has been full of trash that has come down the drainage system upstream and blighted by many large items dumped by residents. Plastic bags have coated the branches along the banks. More work remains to be done: a submerged shopping cart and a file cabinet, for example, remain, as do some of the plastic bags and accumulated debris that mar the view from the Evans Parkway Bridge. The Muldoons said they saw a blue heron from the bridge recently, which is all the more incentive to beautify the habitat. We will continue to focus on this area in future cleanups.