By Michele RobertsonFor 22 years, the community has come together for a Saturday morning dedicated to the betterment of our area. Riverblitz 2021 was held on May 1st from 7-11 am in different areas along the Pecos River. Dagger Draw, Diving Rock, 6Mile Dam, Lower Tansil, and several others. This year volunteers collected more trash than has been collected for Riverblitz in the past decade. 2021 brought in 10.1 tons of waste, almost double the 2020 tonnage. 2.2 tons of this year's weight came fromtwo cars pulled from around Diving Rock. Even so, that leaves 7.9 tons of rubbish collected, two tons more than the 5.9 collected during Riverblitz 2020. Volunteer numbers were down this year by about 58%, 2020 saw over 400 volunteers, while 167 participated in Riverblitz 2021. “This year's Riverblitz event was bittersweet to have half of the amount of participants and bring in around double the amount of trash of a "regular" event,” shared Mary Garwood, Executive Director for Keep Carlsbad Beautiful. A common theme among participants was the desire to make a difference in our community and to show their children how to be good stewards of the land. Salvador and Rocio Martinez made Riverblitz 2021 a family day and joined efforts out near Dagger Draw with their three children, Carla, Tiny, and Diego. Sal and Rocio shared that they wanted to teach their children to help our Earth and give back to the community. “It makes you feel good,” Carla said. “Riverblitz is one of the best opportunities to show our children that there are many of us that do care about the environment and that small groups can make a big difference. We really are all in this together,” shared Mark Hollen. Hollen and his two boys Landon and Logan participate in several trash pick-upsa year. Michelle Perry, dedicated Riverblitz volunteer shared her 2021 experience. Perry and crew were working just down from The Chutes. “There is a gully there that has had a toppled porta-potty in it for a couple of years, along with a bunch of normal trash. We drug that out and cleaned up the camp sites down river from there also. It was a horrible mess,” she shared. The County brought out a backhoe and a couple of workers to assist with getting the porta-potty out. They also removed two old abandoned cars from the area. “I do Riverblitz because I truly care about our planet home, and particularly our local areas. I wish more people recognized the value of what we have. Our river isn’t only beautiful, and deserving of respect for that alone, it is alifeline through the desert. It is the reason our community is even here. I think that some people think that the Pecos is a dirty river. I’ve heard some say that they would never swim in it, etc. The river itself isn’t dirty, it is unfortunately, filled with human trash. We haven’t been able to figure out how to protect it like it deserves, while still allowing access, but at least those who do care can help to take care of it,” shared Perry. Didn’t get to participate in this year’s Riverblitz? Don’t fret, there are more opportunities to volunteer some time and lend a hand. “Stay tuned for more details, but mark Saturday, September 25th on your calendar when we will be partnering with the Upper Pecos Watershed
Association to conduct a Pecos River clean-up effort from Pecos, NM to Pecos, TX. If all goes well, KCB/City of Carlsbad will be working with Eddy County to conduct a Loving Hwy (285) Clean-Up in the Fall of this year. We would love to have sponsors and participants over the age of 14 come out andhelp with that project!” Garwood shared. Saturday October 2nd, marks the 2nd annual Queen up the Guads event happening in the Lincoln National Forest. Be on the lookout for more information on all these upcoming events on Facebook
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