A&M-Commerce Environmental Awareness Society Leads Stream Clean-Up

A group of 35 student volunteers, headed by the A&M-Commerce Environmental Awareness Society, recently took the initiative in improving their community. On March 24, 2018, they cleaned up the litter-filled stream behind Fix & Feed Hardware, Lulu's Burgers, and the Creekside Manor Apartments.

“It is a goal of the EAS to bring awareness of local environmental issues to the community, and to actively remedy the situation when we are able,” said Amanda Hickman, president of the EAS. “Head water streams such as the one we are cleaning make up the largest number of river miles, and are vital to the health and maintenance of larger rivers downstream; in this case, the South Sulphur River,” explained Hickman.  “When a stream is filled with litter, not only is it a threat to water quality, but also to wildlife that depends on the streams to survive.”

The students spent much of their Saturday cleaning up. In the end they collected enough debris to fill an entire dumpster, and ten more full garbage bags were deposited in the recycling bins near the A&M-Commerce campus.

The EAS meets on the first and third Wednesday of each month, and welcomes anyone who is willing to help raise awareness for environmental issues and lend a hand in cleaning up the place where they live. “We would like to see a sharp reduction in the use of disposable plastics and more conscientiousness in properly disposing of or recycling trash,” declared Hickman. The Environmental Awareness Society intends to continue assisting the community through selfless endeavors aimed at improving the environment.