WESTFIELD – Westfield State University’s Department of Environmental Science students put on their detective hats and did some dirty work cleaning up, and in the process discovering some interesting items, along the Wild Land Trail and the Westfield River.
Michael Vorwerk, chair of the environmental science department said the environment can always use a little help.
“I think this is an important event, because the environment needs a friend – a little bit of help and stewardship – to function well,” said Vorwerk.
While cleaning up the university’s Wild Land Trail this September, the student “detectives,” mostly members of the class of 2018, uncovered two armored aluminum travel cases. This excursion was a part of “Trailwork Thursday,” an annual class event. The trail had not been maintained since last fall, so it was challenging in some areas from overgrowth.
Upon discovering the cases, the detectives noticed that there was no name or identification of any kind on the outside of them, so they opened them up and found LED flashlights, new flashdrives, batteries, cables, tools, etc. As they searched the cases, they found a stack of business cards for a hearing aid salesman/technician from Connecticut. When the environmental detectives called the man, he told them that those cases had been stolen out of his car near Hartford. The students took the cases back to public safety on campus and left them there, where the man came and picked them up.
For the second clean up trip, the environmental student detectives were needed to find illegal dumpings as a part of the Connecticut River Source to Sea Cleanup. Mark Damon and Lynn Bannon, both of the Westfield River Watershed Association, organized the annual Westfield River Cleanup. Westfield State student volunteers showed up in force. Students all gave three plus hours of their Saturday helping clean up the Westfield River Watershed.
Students were sent to Chester to find and carry out items tossed in the Westfield River during “midnight dumping,” which is when someone gets rid of item such as tires, mattresses, drums of hazardous waste, or chemicals. Proper disposal of these items is expensive, so some choose to illegally dump the items in the woods, abandoned lots, or highway pull offs. The site in Chester was expansive and full of heavy, large items. Fourteen people headed up river, while other students cleaned sections of the river nearer to Westfield.
First year student and environmental science major Christopher Burke was one of the 14 people who participated.
Burke said cleaning up the river was a worthwhile experience, helping to protect the river and environment from trash and other dangers.
“I think the river clean up is important because of the threat to the river all this garbage poses. And if we didn’t do it, then I don’t think anyone would have. In the spring time when the river rises and floods, most of that trash would have found its way into the river,” Burke said.
Vorwerk said the cleanup projects are beneficial for both students and the local community.
“In this event, our students learn a lot of lessons – the importance of volunteering, community, and civic service,” said Vorwerk. “It gives them an opportunity to visit areas in the watershed that they might not normally go.”
With so many people working, the clean up went quickly and was done in three hours. Many items were picked up, including a roof off of an SUV, a sofa, a loveseat, a burned out dual recliner, seven mattresses, 15 tires and wheels, as well as other assorted garbage and debris.
A majority of the large debris was on the far side of the river at a 4×4 encampment, so students had to wade across the river, pick and bag the garbage, and then wade back across, toting the bags, mattresses, and burnt chair frames a couple hundred yards to the trucks.
According to Vorwerk, the size of the university’s clean up group was a big advantage.
“Our students are volunteering to do the dirty job that no one else wants to do, or can do. The items our students cleaned up are big, heavy, bulky items that most individuals and most groups wouldn’t be able to get,” Vorwerk said.
The environmental detectives had two full-sized pickups and two 8′ trailers overflowing with illegal dumpings, a cleanup record for Westfield State.
All together, Westfield State fielded 26 folks for a total of 100 volunteer hours.
“I’m really proud of the effort our students put forth, and how the power of the group made quick work out of cleaning up a really trashed area,” Vorwerk said.
