SUDBURY -- Over the years all kinds of garbage has been dumped in from Junction Creek. It’s an urban waterway which winds its way through the city of Sudbury.
“Junction Creek back in those days, it was known as Junk Creek, and I’m sure a lot of residents of Sudbury would remember that term. It kind of just seems as an easy way to dispose of waste," said Brandon Holden, a project coordinator with the Junction Creek Stewardship Committee,
Last year during community clean ups, 25-hundred kilograms of garbage was pulled from the creek.
"The number one thing that we find is plastic wrappers, and the rest is mainly composed of single use plastics, so we need to see a big change to try and reduce this in Sudbury in general," said Lianne Girard, an environmental intern with the Junction Creek Stewardship Committee.
Girard says the list of other litter pulled from the creek is shocking.
"We can find about anything in the creek, we have found couches, car tires, shopping carts are also another big problem, microwaves, you name it - we have found it at some point."
The Committee says it is always striving to connect the community to the creek.
"Enabling the public and the people of Sudbury to take part in that restoration, really gives them valuable insight and connection to the environment, and really lets them take ownership," said Holden.
For the past twenty years the Junction Creek Stewardship committee has held many community clean ups. But right now, those efforts are on hold due to physical distancing guidelines, but will resume when people can gather again and be stewards of the waterway and the ecosystem within it.
