Will Shingleton (center) pauses trash pick-up to pose with fellow volunteers during a recent clean-up of a downtown Greenville culvert that empties into the Tar River at Town Common.

Sound Rivers’ summer intern Will Shingleton was out in the field in Greenville last week, joining in on a collaborative East Carolina University-led effort to rid a major culvert of trash. Will is a rising senior at ECU, majoring in environmental health. He, along with fellow interns Leah Tilson and Nathalie Uriarte-Ayala, heads up Sound Rivers’ Swim Guide program.

The cleaned-up culvert runs parallel to Reade Street in downtown Greenville, starting at ECU’s main campus and joining the Tar River by Town Common, just across the street from the popular restaurant Sup Dogs.

Hosted by the ECU Office of Sustainability and ECU Recycling Services, with assistance from student clubs Releaf ECU, ECO Pirates and ECU American Fisheries Society, the clean-up was first initiated in September 2020 and now happens every other month, or as needed, Will said.

Led by Chad Carwein, ECU sustainability manager, Terry Little, ECU Recycling Coordinator, Robert Malpass, ECU Releaf president, and various members of the clubs, the most recent clean-up yielded 80 pounds of trash, including an iPad and useable, but waterlogged, $20 bill.

We thank these volunteers for their efforts to keep our waterways clean, and free of trash!

The next clean-up will be held Sept. 1.