MISSOULA - The Clark Fork Coalition hosted its annual river cleanup at Cara's Park on Earth Day.
People donned plastic gloves and brought various trash, recycling, and compost bags along the river banks. Some kids even found a bike almost about to wash away.
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The cleanup couldn't have come at a better time as the Clark Fork River was listed as #5 on American Rivers’ top ten most endangered rivers in the United States. The listing is due in part to waste and contaminants at the former Smurfit-Stone Mill site.
As the water rises with spring run-off, the Smurfit-Stone site is worrying members of the river conservation and advocacy community.
“We have some concerns and those are escalating within this community and within the county related to the possibility that at Smurfit-Stone if the waters get too high they may wash tons of toxic sediment down the Clark Fork and affect fish, fish kills, communities downstream," American Rivers' Lisa Ronald told MTN. "An incredible ecological catastrophe could happen. And so there's an urgent need to clean this up really Smurfit is a ticking time bomb and the only way we diffuse that is to clean it up.”
American Rivers along with the Clark Fork Coalition have been calling upon the EPA for years to clean up Smurfit. They urge those who live near the river to add their voice to the conversation.
“So, on American Rivers’ website we have a contact form that people can use to reach out to the EPA and share their thoughts with EPA. But I think it also just takes getting involved locally in your community," continued Ronald.
That’s why the Clark Fork Coalition in Missoula works year-round to ensure better health for the river. And why they host an annual cleanup that brings around 100 people to the river.
