Opequon Creek Project Team

Cleaning up trash near our local creeks


Since 2005, thirteen cleanups have been conducted by the Team in the Opequon watershed.  The West Virginia Governor's Rehabilitation Environmental Action Plan (REAP) provides bags, gloves, landfill fees, jon boats, canoes, and trailers to transport trash to the landfill.

Project Benefits: improved recreational experience for the local residents who use the creek to canoe, kayak, wade, and fish.
 
August 14, 2010 - Van Metre Stone Bridge to the Shell Farm (a 4-mile stretch of the creek).  Eighteen people participated in the 13th OCPT cleanup.  Our efforts netted 36 tires, 20 bags of assorted bottles, cans, and miscellaneous small litter.  We saw 6 couches in the water but sadly had no way of lifting the water logged furniture into our boats.  Other items included highway signs, a roll of fencing, shredded inner tubes, a busted cable spool, computer equipment, a soaked sleeping bag, a range hood, sheets of plastic, neatly tied bags of household garbage and much more.  Pictures.
April 10, 2010 - Banks of the Opequon near Van Metre Stone Bridge.  Twenty-two people showed up on Saturday morning to fill 38 bags with bottles, cans, plastic, cigarette butts, and other assorted miscellaneous refuse.  Seven tires, two Barcaloungers, a Futon, a pool liner and other loose trash was piled in the corner of the parking lot for the Department of Highways to remove.  Pictures.
September 12, 2009 - Nahkeeta Campground (Route 9) to Van Metre Stone Bridge.  Ten people manned 2 jon boats, 2 canoes, and 2 kayaks and headed downstream to clean the Opequon of debris.  Our efforts have clearly been realized as we did not pick up nearly the number of bottles, cans, and other trash as we have in previous cleanups.  We removed .92 tons of trash consisting of 12 bags of assorted bottles, cans, platics bags, etc.; 24 tires (including a giant heavy equipment tire); 3 steel barrels; 1 wringer washer; a car axel; a brake drum; a ceiling fan; a porch umbrella; and the most unique item of the day was a Hagerstown Police Department badge.    Pictures 
April 11, 2009 - Banks of the Opequon near Van Metre Stone Bridge.  Fourteen people braved the cold, rainy weather and pitched in to clean up the Opequon near Van Metre Stone Bridge on Golf Course Road.  Everyone worked hard for three solid hours and we collected 49 bags of bottles cans and assorted miscellaneous trash in addition to 10 tires, 6 deer carcass and other large items.  See the Martinsburg Journal article  regarding this event .http://www.journal-news.net/page/content.detail/id/518190.html   Pictures
September 13, 2008 - Lewin Farm, Tuscarora Creek.  Twelve people began the day with coffee and donuts on the Lewin's beautiful, expansive porch overlooking the Tuscarora and the Lewin farm.  Work proceeded and we removed two large log jams which accounted for numerous truckloads of woody debris, a truck load of wire fencing and barb wire and several bags of trash.  It was a productive morning. 
August 16, 2008 - Snider Farm to Lights Ford Bridge.  Fourteen hard-working volunteers turned out to man kayaks, canoes and flat-bottomed boats and picked up trash on a mile and a half stretch of the creek.  We had beautiful weather and at the end of the morning, all boats were loaded to capacity with trash weighing 1.24 tons and including: 10 bags of assorted bottles, cans, and other small items, a muskrat trap, an assortment of large metal and plastic pieces, a large tangle of bailing wire, a plastic lawn chair, a solid steel sawhorse, a metal roadside barrel, three wringer washing machines, a wood stove, a truck bench seat, and 23 tires.   Pictures
April 12, 2008 - Banks of the Opequon near Van Metre Stone Bridge.  Twelve people pitched in to clean up the Opequon near Van Metre Stone Bridge on Golf Course Road.  Everyone worked hard for three solid hours and we collected 40 bags of bottles cans and assorted miscellaneous trash in addition to an air conditioner, a bench car seat, box spring, rabbit cage, large pool liner, 5 tires, 4 car shocks, many sq. ft. of carpet, barbed wire, a television, furniture cushions, car exhaust system, at least six deer carcasses, and other various items.  Pictures
September 29, 2007 - Route 9 to Golf Course Road.  Twelve people arrived at the Nahkeeta Campground at Route 9 to begin a cleanup of the stretch of the Opequon from the campground to Vanmetre Ford Stone Bridge.  The team launched boats about 9:30 and arrived at Stone Bridge at 1:30PM.  We removed .9 tons of trash which included:  23 tires - 6, 50 gal. steel drums - plastic road barrel - bicycle - 2 chairs - 2 TV sets - car battery - a car seat and steering wheel - a steel stair step - lawn mower engine - steel safe and 13 bags of collected trash.  Pictures
July 22, 2007.  OCPT joined its Virginia counterpart at Jim Barnett Park in Winchester to help them with the Abrams Creek clean up, a tributary of Opequon Creek. 

July 21, 2007.  Golf Course Road to Route 45.  Nineteen people gathered at Vanmetre Ford Stone Bridge to participate in the Opequon Creek cleanup from the Bridge to Route 45. Highlights of what was removed from the creek included 27 tires, 24 bags of assorted bottles, cans, etc.,charcoal grill, box springs and mattress, 3 lawn mowers, part of a car, carpets, plastic chairs (2 that matched, found ~1/2 mile apart!), 2 lock boxes, and a T.V.  Left on the bank were 2 very large, heavy safes, 3 couches and left in the water was a large freezer chest.  Days later members retrieved 25 more tires, a full spool of new half inch electric cable, the roof of the portajohn we took out last year, one side of a plastic playhouse, two road work marker barrels, a record turntable, a fishing pole and 4 full bags of trash.   After we unloaded our collection of trash at Route 45, many members continued down the creek by kayak to the Broken Bridge Farm where there was a barbecue picnic waiting. 

July 14, 2007: Tuscarora Creek Cleanup. The Project Team joined other volunteers to remove trash from the Tuscarora, a tributary of the Opequon.
March 31, 2007: Mill Creek Cleanup. The Project Team got together to conduct a clean up of sections of Mill Creek, a tributary of the Opequon. Ten people spent three hours along the creek and collected 49 bags of trash along with an assortment of old tires and other large trash items. Mill Creek has been identified as the priority Opequon tributary for pollution reduction and will be the focus of other Team efforts in the future.
CleanUps in 2005-06. Three Opequon cleanups have been conducted by the Team in 2005 – 2006. Over 140 tires and other trash have been removed from the creek.  Pictures

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