Licking River Roundup will be early next month

NEWARK – The weather could not have been more perfect for a paddle up the Licking River, said Bob Williams, director of the Licking Park District.

“It’s so pretty around here, you don’t notice (trash) sometimes,” Williams said.

But hidden on the embankment or tangled up in branches and tree roots, there is trash, old tires and even some shopping carts in the Licking River.

On Friday, members of the River Roundup Committee and city officials took to the water for a slow paddle up 7 miles of the Licking River, scanning the water for trash buildup that will be removed Sept. 12.

The Licking County River Roundup started in 1988 but only dealt with the section of the river that runs through Newark, Denise Brooks-Natoli said Friday. Now the clean up day every September encompasses the expanse of the Licking Riving through the county.

“It’s not just about cleaning up the objects you can see,” Brooks-Natoli said. “It’s about what we can’t see,” such as pollutants and chemicals that get into the water.

Brooks-Natoli was recently named program administrator for the Licking County Soil and Water Conservation District. She said Friday she was excited about how much the community-based preservation effort has grown over the last few years.

The River Roundup will take place Sept. 12. Newark Mayor Jeff Hall will make a proclamation in City Council Chambers on Sept. 7, marking Sept. 12 as 2015 River Roundup Day.

“This is a great community project,” Hall said. “This river is a great community asset.”

Hall said he was grateful to the hundreds of volunteers who come out every year to clean up the Licking River.

The premier sponsor for the Roundup this year is Shackleford’s Disposal. The owner of the company, Damian Shackleford, joined in on the paddle Friday.

This is the first time the company has been involved in the effort, Shackleford said.

“We are blessed with funds to give back to the community,” Shackleford said. “It’s a great way to get the river clean and to give back.”

Because of a lack of rain recently, parts of the paddle route from the Riverview Preserve to Brownsville Road were too shallow to pass through. But, Williams said, that while dragging the canoes through the shallow areas was not ideal, the shallow water made it easier to see the trash along the route.

The tires — at least two dozen were spotted Friday — became less frequent the further from town the paddlers traveled.

“We want more people aware of what we have here and why we take care of it,” Williams said.

abisaro@gannett.com

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If you go

• What: Licking County River Roundup

• When: Sept. 12, 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

• FYI: To register and get more details, visit lickingcountyriverroundup2015.eventbrite.com.