March 12, 2020
Division of Agriculture joins nationwide, citywide beautification efforts with March 14 cleanup at Coleman Creek
By Tracy Courage
U of A System Division of Agriculture
Fast facts
- Arkansas Watershed Steward Program to clean up Coleman Creek
- Effort is part of nationwide Great American Cleanup
(388 words)
(Newsrooms: with additional file art of previous Coleman Creek cleanup at https://flic.kr/s/aHsk647VGq)
(Download this story in MS Word format here.)
LITTLE ROCK – The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture Cooperative Extension Service and the University of Arkansas at Little Rock are partnering to clean up Coleman Creek on Saturday, March 14 as part of both the Great American Cleanup taking place nationwide, and the Little Rock Citywide Cleanup. The cleanup of Coleman Creek is also an ongoing effort of the Arkansas Watershed Steward Program.
The cleanup will be a half-day event, beginning with volunteer check-in at 9 a.m. at the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture Cooperative Extension Service, located at 2301 S. University Ave., and the UA Little Rock campus near the parking deck bridge.
Volunteers will remove trash from Coleman Creek, which is a tributary of Fourche Creek, flowing to the Arkansas River, then to the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico. The creek runs alongside the property of both the Cooperative Extension Service’s state office and UA Little Rock.
Norm Berner, a coordinator with Keep Little Rock Beautiful, said 73 percent of the thousands of storm drains in Little Rock ultimately wind up discharging their contents into Fourche Creek. Suzanne Hirrel, another coordinator with the organization, said she hoped the experience will help people realize that storm drains don’t lead to water treatment facilities, but rather directly into streams.
John Pennington, extension water quality educator with the Division of Agriculture, said that previous cleanups throughout the Coleman Creek area have already yielded visible benefits.
“Everyone’s efforts over the past few years have made a noticeable improvement to the aesthetic and environmental quality of the creek that runs behind our office,” Pennington said.
“This cleanup is the largest city-wide cleanup in Arkansas, involving more than 50 different locations throughout the city, where volunteers will be working as watershed stewards and community builders,” he said.
Volunteers are encouraged to check-in with organizers prior to the event, and to wear sturdy, close-toed shoes, and yard work clothes that can get a little dirty.
Volunteers will be provided with gloves, trash bags, tools, water, snacks, and t-shirts. Event organizers and sponsors include the Keep Arkansas Beautiful Commission, Keep Little Rock Beautiful, City of Little Rock, UA Little Rock Sustainability Committee and Biology Club, and UA Division of Agriculture Research and Extension.
For more information, or to sign up to volunteer, contact Pennington at 870-329-7009 or jhpennington@uada.edu.
To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit www.uaex.uada.edu. Follow us on Twitter at @AR_Extension.
About the Division of Agriculture
The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture’s mission is to strengthen agriculture, communities, and families by connecting trusted research to the adoption of best practices. Through the Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service, the Division of Agriculture conducts research and extension work within the nation’s historic land grant education system.
The Division of Agriculture is one of 20 entities within the University of Arkansas System. It has offices in all 75 counties in Arkansas and faculty on five system campuses.
The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs and services without regard to race, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, religion, age, disability, marital or veteran status, genetic information, or any other legally protected status, and is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer.
The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture is an equal opportunity/equal access/affirmative action institution. If you require a reasonable accommodation to participate or need materials in another format, please contact John Pennington at 870-329-7009 as soon as possible. Dial 711 for Arkansas Relay.
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Media contact: Tracy Courage
Director of Communications
Cooperative Extension Service
(501) 671-2126
tcourage@uada.edu