Page 13 - July-Aug 2019 Vol37 No2

has high levels of particular pollutants, illegally dumped straight into the water by the end of his trip (he did). UCO, as
nutrients, pathogens, acidity, silt, or or on the streambanks or lakeshores. a company committed to getting people
altered habitats. Between 2004 and 2014, This unsightly trash can be hazardous to outdoors while also respecting the planet,
the number of impaired streams in wildlife, disruptive to ecosystems, and supported the idea of expanding their
Tennessee increased by 31 percent. costly to municipalities and counties. employee’s clean-up act. It encouraged
#Trashtag Project Began in 2015 By citizens to pick up 10,000 pieces of trash
The nearby Tennessee River has been Accidental Littering in the wilderness by October 2016. The
in the news headlines recently for being initiative was dubbed “#TrashTag Project”
one of the most plastic-polluted rivers in The #Trashtag Project was started in and continues to gain popularity around
the country. A researcher spent 34 days 2015 by an employee at UCO, a firm that the world.
last summer swimming the Tennessee makes gear for camping, hiking, and
River to collect samples. His evidence other outdoor activities. The employee Blount County’s initiative aimed for
showed approximately 18,000 microplastic was responding to an incident where the same goal, with efforts by the city,
particles, with nearly half of those being he inadvertently littered while traveling concerned businesses and proactive
polyethylene plastic litter, the common and then began thinking about the neighbors making their corner of the
material in plastic grocery store bags. consequences of that act. world a cleaner place and a stronger,
Water Pollution: A Worldwide Problem happier community.
He vowed to pick up 100 pieces of trash
River and stream pollution is
problematic in communities worldwide.
According to an article on stream
pollution in the resource Water
Encyclopedia, litter and garbage often end
up in surface waters of streams, lakes, and
wetlands. Household trash such as plastic
cups, plastic bags, wrapping materials
and plastic bottles are becoming the most
common litter in the U.S.

In more urban areas, litter is often
transported to streams, lakes, and
wetlands via stormwater runoff. In both
rural and urban areas, trash is sometimes

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