Part one — Who will clean this up?
Woke up this morning wondering how Earth Day 2020 will look?
Is the environment on hold, while we isolate?
This concerns me deeply. Its cleanup time and there’s only a very short window of prime opportunity.
The snow cover has receded and evidence of intrusion abounds in many of our local natural areas — most of which are now barricaded and no longer have daily visitors.
The buds on the trees are the indicators that soon this barren wooded area will spring to life with new growth and the underlying hazards concealed from man and beast — wait to wreak havoc on an unsuspecting passers-by.
Once the foliage covers most of these eminently dangerous elements of broken glass, sharp metal and who knows what else — this once pristine natural riverside oasis becomes like an abandoned mine field just waiting to inflict harm on those that dare to tread here.
This is a big concern that likely effects the animals most. Both the wildlife and our pets will certainly come into contact with these hazards and contaminants.
What will cut them? Will they be maimed for life. What will they unsuspectingly eat? Will it make them sick? Will they die?
Then there’s the children and the rest of us that go off the beaten the path at times, as I did yesterday, and we come across these sometimes vast pockets of destruction. Usually there’s side trails that connect these sites to each other and the main trail, so they are quite easily accessible to the curious and adventurous.
How can we address this devastating situation quickly, before its dangers are more concealed and become increasingly imbedded into the environment?
These areas, off the beaten path, serve as temporary locales for the homeless “forest dwellers”. What we see now are remnants of the supplies handed out to sustain them.
Travel toiletries, clothes, containers, drug paraphernalia, tarps, tents, and so much more — all laid to waste.
This needs to be cleaned up! Who is going to do it and when will this happen?
Could we somehow encourage those that have made the mess to clean it up? I’m not talking about in a punishing way. How could we inspire and lead this effort?
Yes, there’s a pandemic and we are to isolate, however, this will not go away on it’s own and the complications will only compound, if we don’t take action.
I believe it’s possible to take action safely and effectively as a caring community. As we know, this conundrum was created by a consortium and so it’s quite conceivable that the best solution lies within rethinking how we assist and engage this marginalized segment of our society.
