Volunteers hit the water last week to sweep the river clean of trash for the Pamlico-Tar River Association’s annual Riverkeeper Cup Cleanup Challenge.

A total of 540 pounds was pulled from the river and its waterfront in Washington. In Greenville, volunteers collected 1,340 pounds. But in Franklin County, the final total was 1,440 pounds — and that doesn’t include the 3,300 pounds of tires collected from an old dumping ground near a historical site.

“Looks like Franklin County did it again,” laughed Heather Jacobs Deck, PTRF riverkeeper.

This is the third year running that Franklin County pulled off the win and takes home the Riverkeeper Cup trophy.

Deck said turnout was relatively low as far as volunteers went: 15 in
Washington, 20 each in Greenville and Louisburg, but that the volunteers who participate got plenty of “bang for the buck” as they scoured the river in kayaks, canoes and event a motor boat or two.

Of all the trash pulled from the river and shoreline, Deck said they had some unusual finds: six lawn chairs, a rusted out 55-gallon drum, a kid’s basketball hoop, along with the typical trash.

Most unusual was a find in Greenville—a message in a bottle that a Rocky Mount hobbyist dropped in the Tar River two years and two months ago.

“We’ve had people find money in the past, but that was kind of a unique one this time,” Deck said.

The next PTRF river cleanup will take place in early October in conjunction with the North Carolina Big Sweep.