Sunday, May 16 was the day of the annual Clean Up the Sturgeon activity. It was a beautiful day and a successful clean up.
About 350 people participated, picking up trash and litter all along the banks of the Sturgeon. At the same time the clean up was going on there was an environmental fair and barbecue at St. Albert Centre. Just along the walking path on the other side of the pedestrian bridge was a tree and shrub planting activity put on by the River Edge Enhancement Project (REEP), where participants planted more than 400 trees and shrubs. A new addition to the REEP planting this year was the copper tags which the participants engraved their names on and hung around plants. This year we also had trees donated and planted by St. Albert Centre and the Energy Resources Conservation Board.
Clean Up the Sturgeon is a co-operative initiative between the City of St. Albert, Big Lake Environment Support Society (BLESS), volunteer organizations, business partnerships and citizens. For the past decade the clean up has primarily been about cleaning up the banks and adjacent areas of the Sturgeon River. The organizing committee decided this year that to truly be successful we needed to engage the entire community not just in the clean up, which is only once a year, but in the environmental awareness which ultimately would eliminate the need for it.
One of the steps we took in creating this environmental awareness was to hold an environment fair on the same day as the clean up. The attendees included BLESS, which had a display of critters dipped out of the Sturgeon, public works, Alberta Fish and Wildlife officers, who had a great display of Alberta native species, St. Albert Fire Services, Yellow Fish Road, Junior Forest Wardens, Alberta Beverage Container Recycling Corporation (Go Green Team), REEP Planting and Cows and Fish.
Another step we have taken in engaging the entire community is to broaden our partnerships within the business community. Going forward our focus will be as much on business partnerships, community group involvement, citizen involvement, as it is on the clean up itself. In today's economic environment it's not enough to pay taxes and expect the city to do everything. As companies and individuals we have to accept responsibility for our parks and open spaces, which are all a part of our environment.
This year more than 350 people recognized the need for this type of activity, accepted responsibility and came out to do their part in Cleaning Up the Sturgeon. Some 156 people also participated in planting trees and shrubs at the REEP planting site. Our thanks to all of them and our business partners for their help in cleaning up and enhancing the banks and adjacent areas of the Sturgeon River.
Nicholas Batchelor, Volunteer Chair Clean Up the Sturgeon
