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Sound Rivers Program Director Clay Barber cleaned out the Greenville trash trap on Monday, with some assistance from a special guest.

Clay’s 13-year-old nephew, Brayden Burdette, helped remove 20 pounds of trash from the trap on Greens Mill Run in Greensprings Park, and another 20 pounds from Sound Rivers’ constructed wetland in Jaycee Park.

A member of Boy Scout Troop 9 in Greenville, Brayden was racking up volunteer conservation hours, which led to an introduction to Uncle Clay’s work.

“Brayden reacted to the trash trap like most folks do. At first, they’re impressed at how much trash is caught in it and then there’s just this acknowledgement of how simple it is — a simple design that does a great job removing trash from our waterways,” Clay said.

Clay said even though the Greens Mill trash trap had been cleaned out on the previous Friday, all it took was a rain over the weekend to fill it up again for their cleanout on Monday. Most of what they found: Styrofoam and plastic bottles and bags.