Termans’ Example One for All of us on Banks of Monongahela River:
Volunteers jump into efforts
Morgantown Dominion Post
22 September 2009
EDITORIAL
Apparently, no one ever told Tim and Maureen Terman not to volunteer.
Or if someone did, they probably told him to go jump in the river.
Because that’s kind of what they’ve been doing for the past three years
on their weekends. More precisely, they volunteer their Saturdays and
Sundays cleaning up the banks of the Monongahela River.
The state Department of Environmental Protection provides them with the
garbage bags, grabber sticks and pays for picking up their haul. The
city of Morgantown also provides them with a $2,500 grant to help
offset the costs of maintaining and gassing up their pontoon boat. But
the rest of it, their time, their laundry, their bug repellent and
their sweat is all volunteered.
We salute the Termans for their selfless dedication to the river’s
clean up. In a day and age when many look to government as the answer,
while others decry all government intervention, the Termans’ example
reflects the best of both worlds. The state DEP admits it cannot afford
all the costs of smaller litter clean-up projects, nor can the city
completely fund such initiatives as the Termans’. And it normally would
also be cost prohibitive for any volunteer to pay for their own tools,
fuel and cover the garbage pick-up costs. Though it’s not unusual for
many area residents to spend their weekends on the river and other
waterways, it’s doubtful you’ll find anyone else there solely gathering
trash.
The Termans are currently looking to launch a more exhaustive clean up
along the river’s banks next summer, including up to the Pennsylvania
border. They hope to find a public or private sponsor to fund their
efforts during the weekdays, which would allow them to spend more time
cleaning up the river’s banks. We would encourage sponsorship of such
an initiative by this couple or others. The DEP is also ready to
provide the supplies and tools for anyone who wants to follow the
Termans' example on the river or elsewhere. Though litter’s
environmental impact is relatively low on the list, when compared to
such hazards as toxic waste or sewage runoff, it is still an eyesore.
Not to mention a disgrace to the primary waterway that runs through our
community.
We join the Termans in asking everyone to think twice about littering
and encourage the state to step up its enforcement efforts against
those who do. In the meantime, instead of working for the weekend, like
the Termans, it can also be rewarding to volunteer on the weekend, too.