Members of the MSU Fisheries and Wildlife club waded into the water for Sunday’s Red Cedar River Clean Up. Club members braved the chilliness, navigating the banks of the Red Cedar River by foot and in canoes in search of anything that didn’t belong.
The club works year-round with the MSU Recycling Center and other groups to reduce the amount of waste collected as much as possible.
Items that don’t belong can range from burrito wrappers to bicycles — but bizarre doesn’t begin to encompass the list of cast-off pieces found in the river.
Fisheries and wildlife junior Mary Krieger said she’s seen police barricades, wheelchairs, couches and even outdoor cigarette ashtrays concealed beneath the depths of the Red Cedar until the clean up each semester.
Last year, an entire bicycle rack — locks included — was pulled out of the river, Krieger said.
“It’s good that we do it twice a year,” Krieger said. “My passion in life is to keep a clean Earth.”
The MSU Scuba Club even sends divers into the water to help any way they can, including tasks such as releasing trapped grappling hooks under the surface.
Krieger said they usually remove about 70 bicycles from the water per year.
Although the river appears to be healthy, certain habits need to be maintained to keep it that way, club president and fisheries and wildlife junior Becca Blundell said.
“Once they’re out there cleaning, they’ll realize it’s worth saving,” Blundell said. “They’ll be more motivated to help clean up.”
Fisheries and wildlife junior Jennifer Hollen said she helps out year after year because she thinks it’s great to get outside and do something good for the environment.
But that’s not the only motivator driving her to take part in the clean up.
“You just get to meet a bunch of interesting people ... it’s always a really good time,” Hollen said. “And I get to wear my waders.”
