Hillsborough Students, Homeowners Team Up To Clean Wetlands

HILLSBOROUGH, NJ — On Saturday morning, April 15, three box turtles and two garter snakes cheered the arrival of eight students from the Hillsborough High School Project Green Club who were at the Preserved Wetland Area adjacent to the High School property to perform a trash and litter clean up.

The students were joined by 20 homeowners whose neighborhoods were also adjacent to the wetland area.

This team of students and homeowners removed 104 plastic bags, 489 plastic bottles, 337 glass bottles, 64 paper items, 113 candy and snack wrappers as well as other miscellaneous items too numerous to list. In total, 30 bags of garbage were filled.

Under the auspices of the Hillsborough Department of Public Works, the event was organized by homeowner Maureen Merrill of 7 Dubois Round in conjunction with Linda Garrison, advisor to the Project Green Club at the high school.

Merrill shared that the cleanup was for the benefit of those turtles, snakes and other critters who make the wetland their home.

"Now they will not have to eat plastic," said Merrill.

Many of the items found had been in the area for a very long time. The residents and students intend to make the cleanup an annual activity and encourage others to organize cleanups in their neighborhoods and open space areas.

The students who participated included Morgan Benosky, Xihana Garcia, Jesse McCrea, Maple Reagan, Emma Savidge, Madi Hidalgo, Shaiana Sanjiv and Sree Lakkamraju.

— Submitted by Maureen Merrill