Filthy litter spoiling summer’s fun

With summer temperatures heating up, nothing feels better than jumping into the refreshing Stillaguamish River. Almost nothing beats lazily floating an inner tube down the river with your toes dangling in the cool, green water and feeling the dappled sunshine on your face through the leaves of overhanging shade trees.

So, at what point do you decide it looks like a good spot to throw out your garbage? Perhaps there at the sand beach where the children are playing, or maybe there on the river bank behind that nice house, or how about there in the woods just above the river?

Dozens of bottles and beer cans, broken glass, dirty diapers, food, Igloo coolers, used feminine hygiene products and flattened rafts are just a few of the things that my neighbors and I have cleaned up from along the river behind our houses. There is no county park that runs through our neighborhood, only the south fork of the Stillaguamish River that people have turned into their personal toilet and garbage can.

What exactly is running through your mind when you throw that beer can onto the river bank? When you pull your vehicle full of garbage up to the dirt road next to the river and start unloading, are you thinking about how much money you are saving by not disposing of it properly at the transfer station? About $16, you cheapskate.

When was the last time you picked up and threw away a piece of trash that wasn’t yours? Please, at least take the time to properly dispose of your own trash, even if you will not or cannot do a little extra to clean up someone else’s mess.

Neighborhoods along the south fork of the Stillaguamish River from Granite Falls to Arlington are working together to protect the river from people who abuse it. Homeowners are encouraged to watch, be more proactive, and work with local, state, and federal agencies to report anyone trespassing, littering, making fires, etc.

You took the time and effort to pack it in, now pack it out!

SANDRA RINDERO

Granite Falls