Visited a wetlands restoration site and saw a group just dumping trash...

I went out to the Mill Creek wetlands last Saturday, you know, the one they spent $2 million restoring. There was a group of maybe 10 people just tossing fast food wrappers and soda cans right into the reeds. I walked over and asked if they knew this was a protected area, and one guy just shrugged and said 'it's just trash, the water will wash it away.' Three minutes of cleanup by that group could undo hours of volunteer work. Has anyone else run into this kind of blatant disrespect at a restoration site, and how do you handle it without starting a fight?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_logan1mo ago

Last month I saw a guy chucking a tire into the creek by my job site. I just walked over, picked it up, and handed it back to him with a smile. He looked confused for a second then took it to his truck.

murphy.barbara1mo ago

That "it's just trash, the water will wash it away" line is so frustrating it ALMOST makes me want to give up and join them. I'm not proud of this but last month at a different spot I found a half-eaten hamburger just sitting on a bench and without thinking I muttered "at least finish your meal before littering" loud enough for the guy to hear. He didn't even look up, just kept scrolling his phone. I guess my sass level is high but my intimidation level is zero.