The Hope Slough Cleanup attracted more than 30 people to the Kinsman Hall Saturday to help keep a Chilliwack waterway clean.
They fanned out from there and picked up 330 kg of trash in the rain. They collected everything from shopping carts and broken strollers, to metal, paper, and wood, from in and around the slough.
There were quite a few discarded needles as well that went into sharps containers.
Many brought canoes and kayaks to access the hard-to-reach spots in the slough.
"It was fantastic to see so many people come from all over Chilliwack to care for the Hope Slough," said co-organizer Roxanna Froese from #SOS Save Our Slough.
"I think it shows the degree to which the community is onboard with volunteer restoration work. This is an important waterway to many, and we had a really good time on Saturday."
Members of the Chilliwack Scouts and Chilliwack Search and Rescue showed up at the community event.
Co-organizer, Lina Azeez, engagement coordinator of Watershed Watch Salmon Society, said that just being out on the water, and by the water for the cleanup helps connect the work of volunteers to the larger, issues of the day.
"Our unwanted stuff or disposables make their way in to the water, flushing out with the rains and it eventually ends up in the ocean," said Azeez. "We all know about the garbage gyres in the Pacific, we’ve all heard about ocean birds eating our garbage thinking it’s food and feeding it to their young.
"Taking action like we did is one positive step towards reducing our impact and rebuilding our relationship with the water and its inhabitants."
