Image Credit: CFJC Today

By Adam Donnelly

CLEANING UP THE GRASSLANDS

Kamloops Naturalists hold fourth annual Dewdrop Cleanup

May 14, 2019 | 3:22 PM

KAMLOOPS — The Dewdrop Range in the Lac du Bois Grasslands is a popular area for recreation; from hiking and mountain biking to watching birds and other wildlife, it’s an outdoor paradise just a short drive minutes from downtown Kamloops.

The problem is, the area is also a favorite spot for less savory types of recreation, like bush parties, target practice, and off-roading, which along with illegal dumping, can result in much garbage being left behind.

On Sunday, a group of dedicated outdoor enthusiasts got together and spent the morning cleaning up the Dewdrop, to ensure anyone who heads up there can enjoy its pristine beauty.

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You’d be amazed at what people dispose of in the grasslands around Kamloops.

“It’s amazing; tires, cars,” Naturalist Club member Margaret Graham explained. “We pulled a car up from down a bank one year. A Volkswagen. They want to avoid the tipping fees at the landfill and feel that [the grasslands are] a wonderful place to dump it. Unfortunately, someone has to clean it up.”

Others enjoy the quiet of the grasslands to unwind after a long week of work, so they come out into nature and celebrate around a fire. However, it’s what they choose to burn that creates an issue.

“We’ve got pallet fires, and it’s easy to get a flat tire,” Richard Doucette, another Naturalist Club member, explained.

Image Credit: CFJC Today

After the pallets are burned, hundreds of nails are left over. “You come to enjoy the outdoors, and park in a designated parking area, then come back to your car with a couple of flats.”

Luckily, the Kamloops Naturalist Club takes it upon themselves to do a Grasslands Clean-Up every spring. They scour the Dewdrop Range for unwanted debris, then pick it up, and take it to the landfill. Each year, Doucette brings his magnetic nail catchers and clears the area of anything sharp and metal.

“It doesn’t take much. A couple of pallet fires and you’re left with thousands of nails,” Doucette said. “It’s a bit frustrating that people don’t appreciate what they’ve got out here. They’re coming out to enjoy nature, but then leave something late that here.”

Margaret Graham echoes that frustration and wishes the inconsiderate dumpers would think of the rest of the community before they jettisoned their waste in the Dewdrop.

“It is really frustrating,” Graham said. “There’s broken glass, nails. Animals get caught in it. People get caught in it. It’s just a real mess.”

However, thanks to efforts of the Kamloops Naturalist Club, the Dewdrop is now clean and ready for everyone to enjoy.

“A lot of of people come out here to hike, to enjoy nature, to see the [Bighorn] sheep,” Graham said. “There’s lots of places out here, lots of hiking trails. It’s a wonderful place within a [short] drive from the downtown area.”