Home > News Bytes > DRBC Cares for Its Communities: Staff Volunteer to Clean-Up Little Tinicum Island
DRBC Cares for Its Communities: Staff Volunteer to Clean-Up Little Tinicum Island

While the main efforts of DRBC staff are focused on managing and protecting the shared interstate waters of the Delaware River Basin, they also care about helping out in our local communities. DRBC staff recently participated in a volunteer effort to clean up Little Tinicum Island in the tidal Delaware River near the Philadelphia Airport. Little Tinicum Island is part of the William Penn State Forest and is managed by the Pa. Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (PA DCNR) as a natural area. It is home to waterfowl and several wetland species of plants and animals. 

Participating DRBC staff joined over 50 other volunteers at the Ridley Township Municipal Marina, Ridley, Pa., to be transported by boat over to the island. Groups were staged at two different sections of the island where the biggest clean up needs were identified. Volunteers were met with copious amounts of trash, tires, wood, and recyclables. Besides being an eyesore, removing trash from in and around waterways is important, as it helps improve water quality and habitat. 

The day was cool, damp, and dreary, but spirits were high and bright as we removed approximately 15,250 pounds of debris from the island! DRBC staff enjoyed partnering with other like-minded individuals who did not mind getting their hands and feet dirty to help clean the Delaware River. 

Organized by the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary, the Philadelphia Water Department, Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful, United by Blue, and PA DCNR, this cleanup effort was a stark reminder of the importance of disposing of all trash and recycling properly so we can keep our rivers, streams, islands, and shorelines clean.

The DRBC crew is all set to clean up Little Tinicum Island. Photo by DRBC.Volunteers were boated over to the island from the marina in Phila. Water Dept. (PWD) boats. Photo by DRBC.DRBC's Bob Damiani says hi as he is off to clean up the island. Photo by DRBC.Within a few minutes of getting on the island, DRBC's Shane McAleer is filling the first of many bags of trash. Photo by DRBC.DRBC Executive Director Steve Tambini fills his first bag of trash. Photo by DRBC.DRBC's Kendria Henson adds a bag of trash to the ever-growing pile. Photo by DRBC.DRBC's Donna Woolf is all smiles as she gets deep is the brush. Photo by DRBC.Unfortunately, a lot of what was cleaned up on the island was recyclables. These cleanups are a stark reminder of the importance of properly disposing of trash and recycling so these items do not make it into our waterways. Photo by DRBC.DRBC's Joe Sosi moves a tire he found to the trash pile. Photo by DRBC.
DRBC's Elaine Panuccio helps load up the boat with trash.  All items cleaned up on the island needed to be taken back to shore for proper disposal. This was just one of many loads of trash taken to shore by boat. Photo by DRBC.A small sampling of the trash collected on the island during the cleanup. Photo by DRBC.Look at all those tires! Many tires, as well as trash, were collected from the island for proper disposal. Photo by DRBC.The trash is piling high! Approximately 15,250 pounds of trash was collected and removed in just a few short hours. Photo by DRBC.An old dock and drum are two examples of the larger items removed from the island. Photo by DRBC.As we were on the island, a large barge went by.  The Delaware River Port Complex (including docking facilities in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware) is the largest freshwater port in the world. Photo by DRBC.This DRBC visor shows how dirty we all were from the cleanup! That's OK, though, we did not mind! Photo by DRBC.Heading back to shore after a successful effort, the DRBC crew is still all smiles! This is only some of us; in total, nine DRBC staffers volunteered today. Photo by DRBC.Once back at the marina, there was a contest to guess the rough estimate of how much trash was collected. Out of all the volunteers who made a guess, DRBC's Joe Sosi and Donna Woolf were the winners! Photo by DRBC.