A look at Stream Teams in the St. Louis area would be incomplete without a shout-out to the Mighty 211. Led by Brian Waldrup and Bernie Arnold, the 500+ members of Stream Team 211 have removed several thousand tires from the bed and banks of the Meramec River and its tributaries. They are experts at hauling waste of all sizes out of rivers of all sizes, including discarded chemical drums, hot water heaters, and large chunks of vehicles.
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| Bernie and Brian between a pile of tires and a dumpster of non-rubber trash at a clean-up in January 2011. |
Each year, the Team holds major clean-ups on the lower 12 miles of the Meramec River in both winter and summer, regularly drawing about 100 volunteers. They draw these kinds of crowds because not only are they good at what they do, they are also personable and very passionate! They know how to excite others about Missouri streams. When I did a Google search to dig up some extra information on these great folks, I found lots of great things, including their own
YouTube video, featuring Brian!
The Mighty 211 is based in Arnold, MO, but they are always ready to help out other teams in need, especially where there is litter removal involved. So the next time you go to a Stream Team event in the St. Louis area, have a quick look at the cars - you will likely see a "Mighty 211" sticker around somewhere!
WOW. Why do you suppose that area has so many tires and other large chunks of litter? Are they downstream from an industrialized area?
ReplyDeleteI believe that one reason there are so many tires and other large items is that they were used in the past to stabilize the stream banks - a practice which was counter-productive in most cases. Between that practice and the general dumping that occurred over the years, there is quite an accumulation.
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