The predicted rain did not materialize and instead cool but dry weather greeted more than 150 volunteers Oct. 24 as they gathered for the annual Lake Oconee Rivers Alive cleanup. The annual Rivers Alive on Lake Oconee is part of the larger statewide Rivers Alive cleanup that was expected to draw more than 25,000 volunteers across the state this year.

The organizer and sponsor of the Rivers Alive on Lake Oconee is the Lake Oconee Water Watch (LOWW). The president of LOWW, Janet Pearson, should be given much credit for her leadership in making the event such a great success each year. This is no small undertaking and Pearson works tirelessly with her crew each year to make the event work very smoothly.

Groups participating in the cleanup included Citizens’ Involvement Committee, East Atlanta Divers (Covington), The Episcopal Church of the Redeemer, Georgia Power and its employees, Keep Morgan Beautiful, Lake Oconee Anglers, Lake Oconee Water Watch, Putnam County High School Beta Club, Redeemer Episcopal Academy, Rotary Club of Greene and Putnam Counties, Del Webb Community, Gatewood School, Lake Oconee Geocachers, Madison and Morgan County Boys and Girls Club and Fanta-Sea Divers.

Georgia Power’s Land Management Office provided cleanup supplies, organizational support, use of the facilities at Old Salem Park and Georgia Power employees volunteered their time by participating in the cleanup. Georgia Power employees also cooked a great lunch of hot dogs and hamburgers for all the volunteers.

All the volunteers were rewarded with goody bags, a Rivers Alive T-shirt, a great lunch and numerous door prizes. Walking volunteers cleaned up areas around bridges, boat ramps, parks, shorelines, public access areas. The area cleaned stretched from the Wallace Dam north to above I-20. For the fifth year in a row, scuba divers participated and cleaned different areas of the lake’s bottom. Scuba divers with the East Atlanta Divers from Covington and the Fanta-Sea Divers from Madison participated this year.

The volunteer trash collectors at the Oct. 24 cleanup filled a huge roll-off trash container provided by Curly’s Waste Disposal (CWD) in Milledgeville at the Old Salem Park with trash and other materials. Each year, CWD delivers the roll-off container, sets it up and then comes back after the cleanup to weigh the trash and then dispose of the contents.

The trash collected included just about everything imaginable including fishing line, a toilet, large tarp, plastic chairs, cushions, paper and plastic bags, beverage bottles and cans, clothing, cups, plates, knives, forks, food containers, six-pack holders, shotgun shells, bait containers, bleach bottles, cigarette butts, oil bottles, rope, lighters, diapers, car parts, a shot up street sign, buoys, cigar tips, building materials, fishing weights, PVC pipe, ashtray, towels, propane gas bottles, tires, trash cans, plastic table, barrettes, drawer, coolers, fishing lures, 55-gallon drums, fish trap, condoms, strapping bands, plastic sheeting, tampons, a dead armadillo, goggles, snorkel, jockey shorts, car bumper, light bulbs, cell phone, plastic gloves, dead turtles and fish, animal skull, fire hose, bale of pine straw, fishing pole, a can of wasp/hornet spray and a deer hide with one leg still attached.

“I would like to give special appreciation and thanks to Lyn Clark, Anna Haslbauer and Jim Wagner for organizational support during the weeks leading up to the cleanup, to all the volunteers that turned out for the event and to Georgia Power employees for all their help during the cleanup event,” said Janet Pearson, the event’s overall planner and coordinator.

Local event donors/sponsors included Crowe Marine; Curly’s Waste Disposal; Ann and Alan Foster; Georgia Power Company; Hallman Wood Products; Bob Landau; Reynolds Plantation; Roundtree’s IGA; Sheriff Howard Sills; The Peoples Bank; East Atlanta Divers (Covington); Cuscowilla; Joe Schneider; Bodyplex; Buckhead Woodcrafters; Club 24/7; Fanta-Sea Divers; Lake Oconee Dentistry; Long Shadow Golf Club (Madison); Steffen Thomas Museum of Art; Pete and Kathy Stephan and the Supply Chain Georgia Power.

Our local Lake Oconee community needs to give a big thanks to Janet Pearson, the Lake Oconee Water Watch and all those who volunteered and worked during the cleanup to help keep Lake Oconee and the roads and shorelines around the lake clean. Remember to always take a trash bag along on outings to the lake. Don’t be tempted to dump your trash into and around the lake. Keep Lake Oconee and all our lakes, rivers, streams and roadways clean and beautiful for all to enjoy. See you next week.



Outdoor columnist Bobby Peoples can be reached via e-mail at brpeoples@windstream.net