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Confluence Cleanup 2008

Saturday, September 13, 2022
Columbia Bottom Conservation Area, St. Louis, Missouri

September 13, 2008, was Missouri River Relief’s third clean-up at the Confluence, and once again it was a great success. 168 volunteers ignored a stormy weather forecast and hit the river in force.

With some crews heading upstream to the Sioux Passage Ramp, and others cruising out onto the Mississippi River, a massive amount of trash was brought to shore by Missouri River Relief’s hardworking trash boats.

Many groups and individuals were dedicated Missouri River clean-up crews, having been to four or more clean-up events in the St. Louis area. One of these, Mike Clark of Big Muddy Adventures, took a crew of volunteers for an afternoon trash run in his 24 foot canoe, the Clipper! Several of our agency boat drivers had been to Friday’s Watershed Festival and stuck around for the cleanup as well.

MRR Crew working hard to get out just 1 of the 5 refrigerators found during the cleanup! Photo by Scot Heidbrink.

Trash Tally

  • 152 Large Bags of Trash! Plus..
  • 65 tires (including one monster tractor tire 4 feet in diameter weighing over 500 lbs)
  • 5 refrigerators
  • 2 chairs
  • 2 blue 55-gallon plastic barrels
  • 3 metal 55-gallon drums
  • 9 large styrofoam chunks
  • 33 pieces of scrap metal
  • 2 five gallon buckets
  • 1 inflated green floaty ring
  • 1 Tigger toy ball
  • 1 full beer can labeled “211” found by Stream Team 211
  • 1 German plastic toy soldier
  • 1 green plastic shed
  • 1 bike frame
  • 1 blanket
  • 1 tent
  • 2 gas tanks
  • 1 Sit & Spin toy
  • 1 douche
  • 1 mail box
  • 1 toilet float
  • 1 sand-buried, dilapidated metal shed
  • 1 hot water heater
  • 1 metal sign
  • 1 baseball bat
  • 3 propane tanks
  • 1 fisherman’s jug w/ hook
  • 1 bicycle (well past its prime)
  • 1 bed spring frame
  • 1 table
  • 1 large metal ratchet
  • 1-30 gallon metal tank
  • 2-50 gallon plastic garbage can
  • 3 barge cables
  • 1 construction barrel
  • ½ of a metal drum
  • 1 barge turnbuckle key
  • 1 car seat
  • 1 TV picture tube
  • wood stakes
  • 1 truck headlight
  • 1 cooler
  • 1 toilet seat

Confluence Cleanup Results

Results Brochure 

Total Volunteers: 168

  • Volunteers signed in: 131
  • River Relief Crew: 19
  • Boats: 9 (4 MRR boats; 2 MDC boats; 2 U.S. Fisheries and Wildlife; 1 Big Muddy National Fish and Wildlife Refuge)
  • River Miles Cleaned: 12 (11 miles Missouri, 1 mile Mississippi)
  • River Stage: 15.1-ft. @ St. Charles gauge
  • Landfill: 4.1 (not including tires)
  • Tires: 65 (one tractor tire 4 ft in diameter over 500 lbs.) ; 1.3 tons

Total Trash Tonnage: 5.4 TONS

Groups Participating: Lindbergh High School, Washington University Alpha Phi Omega, Washington University Physical Therapy, Girl Scout Troop #607, Bank of America Employees, Big Muddy Adventures

Stream Teams: 519, 2793, 1782, 401, the mighty 211, 1995 (DeSoto Car Shop Team), BEEP, 1875, 439 (Parkway North Nature Nuts)

Fun Team Names: Oscar the Trashman, the Wally’s, the Thunderbirds, the River Rats, Stream Team 211, BEEP (Boeing Employees for Environmental Protection), Water Girl, the Nature Nuts, Grassy Grassos, the Mud Bugs, Altogether, the Odd Balls, Bank of America, Girl Talk, Rocks the Boat

Event Sponsors

Cleanup programs like these would not be possible without our generous donors and sponsors.

Ameren UE
Anheuser-Busch
Bass Pro Shop
EarthShare of Missouri
Fred Weber, Inc.
Rick Holton
Missouri Department of Conservation
National Park Service
Pat Jones
River Kids
Rivermiles LLC
St. Louis Metropolitan Sewer District
St. Louis/Jefferson Solid Waste Mgmt. Dist.
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Waterways Council

Event Partners

Big Muddy Adventures
Columbia Bottom Conservation Area
Confluence Greenway - Trailnet
Dominos Pizza - Blackjack
EcoWorks Unlimited
Hazelwood School District
Mighty #211 Stream Team
Missouri Stream Team
Missouri River Communities Network
Spanish Lake Fire Dept.
Tri-Rinse, Inc.

Ready for Action?

This website is created and maintained by Missouri River Relief, P.O. Box 463, Columbia, MO 65205
MRR is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. Federal Tax ID (EIN) 03-0425187
© 2023 Missouri River Relief | Website development and design by Pixel Jam Digital
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