Ashtabula Soil & Water Conservation District holds stream clean-up in Geneva area

GENEVA – The Ashtabula Soil & Water Conservation District didn’t wait until Earth Day to clean up some local waterways.
On April 11, the District held a stream cleanup in the City of Geneva and outside the city as well.
Those involved in the effort met at Memorial Park and then dispersed to clean up several areas throughout the watershed, from Dunkin Donuts to Geneva State Park, according to Suzanne Westlake, District Manager for the Ashtabula Soil & Water Conservation District.
A total of 10 bags of trash, a tire from Wheeler Creek, a large section of vinyl siding from Cowles Creek, and a large piece of carpeting from Cowles Creek were removed. In addition, half a barrel was taken out of Cowles Creek. The rest of it was rusted away.
“A good half of the dumpster was full,” Westlake said.
Ashtabula SWCD District Technician Annika Dudik was happy with the public turnout for the clean-up.
“It was pretty good,” she said, noting eight were lending a hand.
Two of the people showing up for the cleanup at Cowles Creek were Sarah and Marcus Hess of Perry. On Saturday morning, they were cleaning away from the creek, around the playground at Memorial Park.
Marcus’ garbage bag was full with some plastic fuel containers he found. He liked helping out.
“It’s a good way to involve ourselves in the community, get out of our comfort zone,’ he said.
The tidying up of the waterways comes at a time that the Ashtabula Soil & Water Conservation District is in the middle of another effort as well.
“Currently, we are working on what’s called a non-point source implementation strategy plan,” Dudik said of the NPS-IS plan for the watersheds of the creeks. “It’s essentially going to help target non-point source pollution.”
While the District is the main writer of the plan, it’s also working with stakeholders in the area to come up with project ideas to include in the plan, according to Dudik.
“So, we have been in talks with the health department, we’ve reached out to people on city council, the township,” she said, noting they’ve also reached out to people at the state park and some residents in the area. She noted that the Ohio Department of Agriculture has some watershed managers to help develop the plan.
The stream cleanup helped bring public awareness to the creation of the plan and was also designed as a public outreach event, she noted.
Currently, the first two chapters of the plan, which provide information on the background and the current status, are done, Dudik said.
“We’re working on Chapter Three,” she said, noting it’s about the goals that are hoped to be achieved. Chapter Four will cover the project plan.
Once the plan is done and submitted to the Ohio EPA, the District can apply for multiple grants that it becomes eligible for, Dudik added.
“So, essentially, this is the first step to getting funding,” she said.
Several types of funding can be sought.
“The big one that the NPS-IS plan is a requirement for is Section 319,” Dudik said. “That’s Ohio EPA. You have to submit a NPS-IS plan to become eligible for that funding. And that tackles non-point source pollution. It’s the big one for NPS-IS. But there’s a bunch of other funds. Great Lakes Restoration Initiative is another big one.”