More than 3 dozen volunteers haul 1,360 pounds of trash from Fish Creek Linear Park

A Saturday morning cleanup at Fish Creek Linear Park drew more than three dozen volunteers who removed 1,360 pounds of trash from the park and its 7.3-mile Fish Creek Trail, the organizers said.

The event was the seventh annual Fish Creek Cleanup Challenge organized by Keep Grand Prairie Beautiful (KGPB). Organizers invited volunteer groups, families and individuals to “grab, gather, fish out and haul off” litter, debris and other materials that have accumulated in the woods, creek beds and waterways alongside the trail.

KGPB’s public announcement described the turnout and scope of the effort and said volunteers recovered 1,360 pounds of material. The cleanup drew youth groups including Boy Scouts and several families who spent the morning picking up trash along the trail.

Volunteer 1, a volunteer, said, "It's a lot more than I remember. It's on all the trees where it's hard to get, so we try to do as much as we could." Volunteer 2, a volunteer, added that many of the young participants were learning about environmental stewardship: "We're very appreciative of all the boy scouts and and young troops out here, learning about the quality of keeping our environment clean." Volunteer 3, a volunteer, described how passersby stopped and returned to help: "We even had 1 gentleman who was jogging by early this morning before we got started and said he'd come back, and he actually did come back. He's out there now."

Other participants reflected on the emotional impact of the cleanup. Volunteer 4, a volunteer, said, "Breaks my heart. It's terrible. So I'm definitely glad that ... I'm hands on, you know, doing my part to, you know, make it better." Volunteer 5, a volunteer, urged people to use trash receptacles rather than discarding waste along the creek: "Basically, I just wish people would throw their own trash in the trash can instead of just throwing it on the ground or throwing it in the river. I love nature, and it just makes me kinda sad that, you know, people don't just throw it in the trash can."

Organizers said the challenge is intended to reduce litter in the park, protect the creek corridor and teach stewardship to residents who use the trail.

The cleanup was presented as an annual community volunteer initiative led by Keep Grand Prairie Beautiful; additional details about future events were not specified in the announcement.