By Elliott Groen
On the blustery morning of Saturday March 26, over 50 volunteers gathered in the Corpus Christi Catholic Secondary School parking lot. Volunteers included familiar faces from previous events, a large contingent of students from local high schools, and Ward 5 City Councillor Paul Sharman. Over the next three hours, garbage was removed from Sheldon Creek, its floodplain, and the surrounding woodlot. Some items were expected: masks, wrappers and plastics discarded and blown in by the wind, but there were also plenty of other items including chairs and shopping carts pulled out of the middle of the creek. The cleanup efforts also focused on an area where old farm waste had been dumped over a decade ago by a previous landowner. Washing machines, sinks, rusted-out pesticide containers, driveshafts, and other pieces of farm equipment were carried out by volunteers. In total, we were able to remove 40 garbage bags of waste, 20 tires, four batteries and an estimated 800 kg of scrap metal.
The Field and Stream Rescue Team would like to thank Paletta International Corporation for providing access to the property, the City of Burlington as one of our key sponsors and for collecting the waste from the parking lot after the event, and our other key sponsors: QRX Technology Group, Conservation Halton, R&M Construction, Preston Insurance, and Anthony’s Excavating Central Inc.
Field and Stream Rescue Team is a registered charity that revitalizes green spaces through educational and hands-on community events. For more info about our organization, to volunteer at future events, or make a charitable donation, please visit streamrescue.com.
