June 12, 2010
Siouxland Missouri River Clean-up 2010
Chris Larson Park Boat Access, Sioux City, IA
For the third year in a row, we joined the "Sioux Crew" in Sioux City, IA to clean-up the first channelized stretch of the lower Missouri River. Summer had brought on the heat, and every night, a raging thunderstorm would pop up as we slept inside our little tents & cabins, there was strobe-like lightning, thunderous crashes, driving wind, and inches upon inches of rain!
But that did not hinder this group's clean-up efforts! The weather proved to be cool & cloudy during the day, and we had a great time combing the banks for trash in this popular boating and fishing town. Despite a lack in volunteers showing up in great numbers on Saturday as we'd expected, the results nevertheless were impressive!
Total Volunteers: 80
MRR Crew: 15
Sioux Crew: 16
Boats: 7 (4 Missouri River Relief, 2 Nebraska Game and Parks, 1 Iowa DNR)
River Miles Cleaned: 10
River Level: 19.5 and rising (Sioux City Gage)
Tires: 12
Total Tonnage: 2.4 Tons
Groups Involved: Cargill Inc. - GOSCNA and DSO, Sergeant Floyd Museum, Izaak Walton League, City of South Sioux City, NE, South Dakota Canoe & Kayak Association, Keep Northeast Nebraska Beautiful, South Sioux City Convention and Tourism, SSC Public Library, Coast Guard Auxiliary, City of Sioux City, IA, American Water, Watchful Eye, Missouri River Boat Club, Meisner Management, and the Scenic Park Campground
Names of River Teams: Cargill 1.0, No Name Beaver, Big Reds, Big 10 Huskers, Mud Sharks, Trash Haulers
Trash Tally!!!!
61 large blue Bags of Trash
12 Tires
1 Mag Wheel Rim
1 Tricycle
1 kids Bicycle
1 Chunk O’ Styrofoam
2 Coolers
2- five-gallon Plastic Buckets
2- 55-gallon Metal Drums
2- 55-gallon Plastic Barrels
1 TV exterior w/ a VCR Player
1 Range Top
1 Pressurized Water Tank
1 Bedframe
1 flowery upholstered Couch w/ cording
2 metal Folding Chairs
1 Headboard “Doubloon” brand
1 Truck Bedliner
1 Truck Camper Top
2 Gas Tanks
1 Toyota Axle w/ Wheels
2 License Plates
2 Batteries
1 Drive Shaft
1 Windshield Wiper
2 Bumpers
1 Car Grill
2 soggy pieces of Carpet
1 Tarp
3 heavy Wire Coils
2 flats of Corrugated Tin
25 feet of Cable Wire
1 Lantern
1 Step Ladder
1 Hedge Trimmer
1 large plastic Laundry Basket
1 Ammunition Box
2 Baby Walkers
1 Crystal Vase
1 Bed Rail
4 Barrel Bands
3 Metal Strips
4 Metal Poles
1 Flag Pole Stand
Over 1,000 lbs of Cable Wire
6ft Blade
5 hunks of assorted Metal
1 Christmas Light Bulb
A special thanks to Sally Reinert with Keep Northeast Nebraska Beautiful for taking the lead on helping coordinate this awesome event and feeding the River Relief Crew all weekend! Also, to Cargill Inc. business units Grain and oilseed supply chain and Dressing, Sauces, and Oils who supported the clean-up effort. Cargill not only provided much-needed funding to make this event possible, but also brought a sizable group of volunteers to provide muscle as well. They filled an entire plate boat full of trash!!! The River Relief Crew also very much appreciates the wonderful accommodations from the friendly folks at the Scenic Park Campground and the three ultra-modern "eco" cabins that were provided for us on the riverfront. A great time was had by all, and we look forward to Siouxland keeping this 3-year tradition alive and rolling along in the future!