Lake Wylie tradition comes to Charlotte, NC mountains and SC lakes. Here’s how to join
What began in Lake Wylie almost two decades ago now flows through Charlotte region to the North Carolina mountains, and all the way down to Lake Wateree as volunteers protect their most critical resources.
More than 1,500 volunteers are expected at more than 50 sites from lakes James to Wateree on Saturday morning for Riversweep. The volunteer trash and debris cleanup runs from 9 a.m. to noon. Sites across North Carolina and South Carolina largely will model what began long ago on Lake Wylie.
“For 18 years, concerned residents and boaters on Lake Wylie have been gathering every fall to clean up their lake,” said John Searby, executive director with the Catawba Riverkeeper Foundation. “Their passion has inspired thousands of people all across the river basin to join in to ensure we have trash free waters to enjoy.”
Volunteers participating this year will cover Lake Norman, Mountain Island Lake and others, almost a dozen in all plus riverene stretches of the Catawba River.
Lake Wylie typically has participation all along the lake, from the Belmont area in North Carolina to Rock Hill, Fort Mill and Tega Cay. The biggest trash collection point typically is at Buster Boyd Access Area, where many years debris is brought in by barge and thrown away by the tractor or forklift load. Boat captains ferry volunteers to more remote parts of the lake that typically aren’t as accessible for cleaning.
Tires, metal and chunks of floating dock foam are common items collected. Others items range from large (whole or chunks of boats) to odd (a shopping cart or car door) to the bizarre (a pillowcase full of snakes at the first event). A single fall Saturday often can bring in dozens of tons of trash from Lake Wylie. Low or high water, drought (drought canceled it in 2015) and volunteer support can impact how much is collected, but largely the event has been consistent since the first gathering in 2002.
Often heavy storms knock loose large debris, which isn’t collected until Riversweep. So it’s more than just litter.
The event can help with navigational safety on the lake. Riversweep also cleans water bodies that are the main sources of drinking water (Mountain Island Lake for Charlotte, Lake Wylie for the Rock Hill and Fort Mill region) for this region.
This year there are participation and collection points at Harbortowne Marina, Catfish Cove, Riverside Marina, Paw Creek, Tailrace Marina, McDowell Nature Preserve, Anchored Soul and Gaston County Wildlife Club on the North Carolina end of Lake Wylie. The South Carolina side has Buster Boyd, Ebenezer Park in Rock Hill, Tega Cay Marina and Nivens Creek Landing.
Below the Lake Wylie Dam, there are participating spots at the Anne Springs Close Greenway in Fort Mill, Riverwalk in Rock Hill, Water’s Edge Park in Indian Land, the Lindsay Pettus Greenway and Edgewater Sunset Pointe Marina in Lancaster County, six spots in the Great Falls area and Catawba Riverkeeper outdoor classroom and trail in Fort Lawn.
Across the Catawba River basin, there are volunteers from 20 counties set to participate. Last year more than 1,400 volunteers collected more than 61,000 pounds of trash and recyclables.
Volunteer cleanup efforts are common in the area. Keep York County Beautiful dates back to 2010. Rock Hill Clean & Green dates back to the late 1980s. In Fort Mill, after complaints to the town regarding litter, recently established its Second Saturday Service program that brings volunteers together to pick up litter once a month.
For more, including how to volunteer, visit catawbariversweep.org.
