Morgantown Dominion Post - Editorial
6 June 2006.
The solution to most problems is at their source. Deciding where and how to begin with any initiative more often than not dictates whether it succeeds or fails. That's why we believe Saturday's Monongahela River Sweep taps into long-term solutions to preventing the unsightly mess behind the Morgantown Lock and Dam. It will also increase the level of awareness across this region about how trash and litter in the Monongahela's tributaries ends up in the river itself or along its banks. The cleanup has lots of sponsors, including official ones like the state Department of Environmental Protection's and the Division of Natural Resources, and local ones like the Monongalia Arts Center and the Morgantown Area Chamber of Commerce's Vision 2020. What it still needs is volunteers to remove debris from the upper portion of the river and the streams flowing into it.
But much more integral to this project's potential is the mentality it is trying to create among this area's residents.
As one co-sponsor of the event put it, "The stuff at the dam comes from 'somewhere else,' and this event is attacking 'somewhere else.' "
The DEP's Rehabilitation Environmental Action Plan project manager has also made it clear that as important as everyone doing their part Saturday, at the very least everyone should concern themselves with putting their trash in the right place.
Teaching people is not about how many facts can be memorized about litter laws. Instead, area residents must be able to comprehend, problem solve and arrive at new solutions if we are expected to stop the flow of trash into the Mon River.
Another aspect of this cleanup we cannot allow to go without mention is not only how aesthetically important it is to our community, but the impact it has as a literal revenue stream.
West Virginia's tourism industry in the last 20 years has increasingly become a mainstay in this area's diverse economy. White-water rafting, kayaking, swimming, fishing and boating are all key elements in the Mon's tributaries and the river, itself, as its water quality has improved.
And like other aspects factored into this area's quality of life, the river's health is another measure of how good it is - or not. Which often can directly influence the decision by businesses and professionals to relocate to our town or county.
The scope of this project also recommends it to our editorial page because of its regional scope that extends to 10 counties whose tributaries flow into the Monongahela River. We urge everyone to get involved in River Sweep this weekend. Like every river it does go somewhere and so does its trash, but at the very same time it stays right here, too.