377 pounds of litter pick up along Huffman Road in Birmingham, Alabama on January 23, 2021. Photo via Katie Fagan with Black Warrior Riverkeeper

377 pounds of garbage.

That’s how much litter was picked up in two hours along Huffman Road in the Eastern area of Birmingham on January 23rd by local volunteers.

Earlier this month, the Black Warrior Riverkeeper announced a new partnership with the City of Birmingham to help clean streets where rain will otherwise carry litter into storm drains, then local creeks, and ultimately the Black Warrior and other area rivers and streams.

Black Warrior Riverkeeper AmeriCorps Volunteer Engagement Coordinator and Birmingham native Katie Fagan has been tapped to organize and manage two volunteer street cleanups each month.

We recently talked to her about this new and exciting project.

A Clean and Healthy Watershed

A recent graduate of UAB with a Masters Degree from the Anthropology of Peace and Human Rights program, Fagan sees a connection between litter cleanups and watershed protection.

“We are a riverkeeper, but our interest is in the whole watershed, the entire community. It is where we live. It is where we work and play. We want to make sure it is clean and healthy, not only for the sake of our natural resources but for our fellow community members who live there.”
Katie Fagan

The cleanups have garnered the full and enthusiastic support of District One City Councilman Clinton Woods.

Here are posts by the Councilor and the Birmingham City Council reporting on last week’s successful cleanup.

More Than Picking up Litter

The clean-ups are about the environment and the community according to Fagan.

“It is great to get people out. We are blessed in Alabama with amazing outdoors, but when you walk down the street it is also our environment. This is a hands on way to make a positive change in your community.”
Katie Fagan