July 05, 2011
Tuesday

This year the high school students contributed to the community by collecting over 20,000 pounds of trash in Ketchikan.  The crew of the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Naushon helped to clean the breakwater along the Tongass Narrows, while the Electronics Support Detachment worked to clean up areas along North Tongass.  A lady organized a cleanup of Rotary Beach, collecting over 400 pounds of trash, litter, and the nails from burned pallets.  Other people organized and participated in their own local cleanup activities.  Keep Alaska Beautiful organized the high school cleanup for the second year and is now working to clean up Gravina Island and Nichols Passage.  The Borough is working on removing boats and trash from Gravina, Pennock Island and the Tongass Narrows.

On April 16, 2005, “Trash Tour 2005, Revilla Road” took place.  About 75 people spent about six hours of their Saturday cleaning the litter and accumulated solid waste from Revilla Road and the area around it.  They were from the Coast Guard, Scouts, Borough employees, various organizations as well as concerned citizens.  In preparation for the “trash tour” I had asked local businesses if they could assist in the project on things which the average person could not help with.

Employees of Princess Tours participated as did local businesses such as the Carriage Works who used their tow truck to pull up junk cars, large appliances and other items that had been dumped off the road near Mile 4.  Robert McRoberts, Dig It Construction brought a dump truck and a backhoe which he used to gain access to a rock pit at Mile 7, where he removed junk cars, parts of cars, and other items that had been dumped there in years past.  He then hauled the cars to be recycled and took the other items to the landfill.  Wade Purdy of Totem Towing waited until most of the workers were gone then went to work pulling junk cars, which were several hundred yards down in a valley, from Revilla Road.  When all of the trash was collected, Glen Thompson, Tongass Sanitation worked his magic in making the tons of litter in yellow bags disappear.  I still appreciate the work they did and the community spirit they showed in participating in the “Trash Tour”.

After most of the people left for the day, and Robert McRoberts had removed the cars and large auto parts that had been partially buried under rocks and dirt in the Mile 7 rock pit, a husband and wife showed up to pick up and bag the small stuff  that were left in the rock pit.  I worked with them several hours in picking up trash while they continued to diligently work into the evening.  I enjoyed conversing with them while we worked.  I then left to help one of the Coasties from the Electronic Support Detachment clean up a different area that I had previously located.  When I returned, the rock pit was very clean and the bags of trash were placed along the road.

I recently learned that the health of the husband that worked so hard in the rock pit had deteriorated to such an extent that he, although relatively young, is now in a health care facility.

The reason I mention these memories of the “Road Tour”  is because I returned to the rock pit in response to information from the State Troopers that there was a junk vehicle located there.

The following pictures of the rock pit show what people have done, after the work of Robert McRoberts and that couple six years ago.

Jerry Cegelske
KGB Code Enforcement Officer
Ketchikan, AK

Received June 30, 2011 - Published July 05, 2011