77 turn out to remove debris, refuse from area near Yuma state park

Volunteers assisted the Arizona State Quartermaster Park with tree removal and park ground clean up around Yuma's Quartermaster Depot Historic State Park on Saturday.
 
Clean up operations were all part of the National Public Lands Day.
 
The Ocotillo District Boy Scouts and the Bureau of Land Management co-sponsored the event in cooperation with the U.S. Interior Department's "Take Pride in America" program that promotes volunteer efforts, Jack Simes, Boy Scouts spokesman, said.
 
"This was a tight area between the 4th Avenue Bridge and the Ocean-to-Ocean Bridge," Simes, said. "We found only a couple of tires and this was a good sign of improvement over the past."
 
There was 77 participants who contributed to the clean up. They removed 12 tons of debris that include 30 trash bags of plastic.
 
The Arizona Department of Corrections dispatched 23 wildland fire crew members who spearheaded the operation with burnt tree removal. The Yuma County Juvenile Justice Center provided 10 youth and a probation officer while six Boy Scout troops and their Order of the Arrow as well as one cub pack assisted with clean up of Gateway Park.
 
Much needed material was also provided including two one-ton dump trucks by the Arizona Department of Transportation. Mellon Farms offered a water truck for dust control. Allied Waste brought three 40 cubic yard containers.
 
Glen Curtis, Inc. provided portable toilets and Liberty Motor Sports loaned two off highway vehicles to haul trash. Meanwhile, the city of Yuma Parks Department provided a loader to compact debris. Pepsi Cola Bottling of Yuma donated 20 cases of Aguafina bottled water.
 
Other volunteers included the La Raza Car Club and Yuma High School. While the City of Yuma Police and Fire Departments provided on-site emergency services.
 
Simes said, he also appreciated the help from Mark Stewart with the City of Yuma Public Works, Mark Ericson, a Yuma High School teacher, Mary Ann Easterday, chairwoman of the Clean & Beautiful Commission, and Lana Fahrenhald who arrived from Imperial Dam to help in the effort.
 
National Public Lands Day preserves the legacy of the Civilian Conservation Corps that set the standard for stewardship from 1933 to 1942 to protect America's natural heritage. During this time more than 3 million people helped build the infrastructure of the modern outdoor recreational system that is still in use today, Simes said.
 
During an earlier summer cleanup Simes appealed to residents to use landfills which are designed to handle trash and so avoid many of the problems that precipitate a clean up. Fines for illegal trash dumping can start at $1,000, according to state law.


----
William Roller can be reached at wroller@yumasun.com 539-6858.