Community stream cleanup for Geronimo and Alligator creeks set for Oct. 3
Annual fall watershed improvement event to be held in Seguin and New Braunfels
The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and the Geronimo and Alligator Creeks Watershed Partnership will host its seventh annual Fall Stream Cleanup in Seguin and New Braunfels from 9 a.m. to noon on Oct. 3.
Individuals, volunteer groups, businesses, churches and other organizations are invited to assist in the removal of litter from stream banks, roadways and other public areas. Cleanup supplies will be provided, and volunteers will receive breakfast tacos, coffee and event T-shirts.
To ensure adequate supplies for all participants, volunteers are asked to preregister for free at tx.ag/GeronimoAlligatorCreekCleanup.
Volunteers should meet at 9 a.m. at the Seguin Independent School District Irma Lewis Outdoor Learning Center, 1865 E. U.S. Highway 90, or at the Oak Creek Estates pool parking lot in New Braunfels, 250 Escarpment Road.
Volunteers provide significant impact to watershed
Since the first spring cleanup in 2013, volunteers have donated more than 5,500 combined hours and removed more than 43,000 pounds of trash and debris from the watershed.
“It’s incredible to see what has been accomplished by volunteers at these cleanup events,” said Mandy Stamnitz, AgriLife Extension program specialist and Geronimo and Alligator Creeks Watershed coordinator, Texas A&M Department of Soil and Crop Sciences. “Forty-three thousand pounds is a massive amount of trash — over 21 tons. The fact that all this was removed by hand through volunteer efforts is a testament to how much this community cares for its waterways.”
About the partnership
Local stakeholders established the Geronimo and Alligator Creeks Watershed Partnership in 2012 in response to elevated E. coli levels in Geronimo and Alligator creeks. Through free educational programs and outreach events, the partnership promotes the implementation of best management practices by watershed residents.
More information is available at www.geronimocreekwatershed.org or by contacting Stamnitz at [email protected].
Funding for this partnership effort is provided through a federal Clean Water Act §319(h) Nonpoint Source Grant administered by the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
