Photo courtesy of organizers
(L-r) Sen. Scott Surovell, Supervisor Rodney Lusk, Del. Paul Krizek and Mohamed Rahman April 5 at annual Little Hunting Creek clean-up.
Little Hunting Creek got a much-needed clean-up April 5, when Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell (D - Mt. Vernon) hosted his annual Little Hunting Creek Cleanup in the Hybla Valley area at Janna Lee Avenue Bridge and at the Mount Vernon Shopping Plaza.
More than 50 volunteers, including Delegate Paul Krizek and Fairfax County Supervisor Rodney Lusk, turned out to collect an estimated 60 bags of trash and remove four abandoned Costco shopping carts from the stream. Volunteers collected large quantities of plastic bags, styrofoam containers, and beverage cans, as well as:
Four shopping carts
Two from Costco
One from Shoppers Food Warehouse
One from Home Depot
Three tires
An electric scooter
Street Signage
A bicycle
A traffic cone
A skateboard
A hubcap
10 full jugs of motor oil
- Dozens of balls
Once named “Fairfax County’s Trashiest Stream” in 2007 by Fairfax County Government, Little Hunting Creek has functioned as a dumping ground and sewage collector for decades as a result of outdated stormwater management infrastructure and development, leaving the stream eroded and a poor habitat for wildlife. Shopping carts are frequently abandoned in and around the creek. Since 2011, Majority Leader Surovell and volunteers have removed approximately 250 shopping carts from the creek, as well as 270 tires.
Majority Leader Surovell expressed gratitude for everyone who came out to clean up the creek: “Thank you to our exceptional community volunteers, including students from Hayfield Secondary School National Honor Society and United Community, for cleaning up Little Hunting Creek. I continue to be disheartened by the volume of abandoned shopping carts and evident litter dumping which is occurring in our local streams. Community awareness of proper trash disposal is crucial as we work to clean up our environment.”
