Wapsi River Environmental Education Center Annual Spring Cleanup

DIXON, Iowa (KWQC) - With Earth Day right around the corner, the Wapsi River Environmental Education Center held it’s annual spring cleanup to celebrate Earth Day.

This morning, about a dozen community members gathered at the Wapsi River Environmental Education Center to remove invasive species and unwanted brush from the area in hopes of making way for the new green to bloom as the weather turns warmer.

Dave Murcia, the director of the Wapsi River Environmental Education Center said, “Earth Day is a chance for not only us in the conservation and our friends group and the public but for all of us in the community, the region, the world, to recognize the Earth as sacred and even a place that we need to take care of in a more sustainable way.

A Clinton, IA resident, Connie Schmitz, attended the cleanup with her grandchildren in hopes of instilling a love and respect for nature in them. Both the grandchildren, Ryan and Ellie Schmitz, are working toward their junior naturalist merit badges today. Ryan earned his today with all the hard work he’s done for the environment and Ellie is well on her way to achieving it in the near future as well.

According to Earthday.org, the official mission statement for this year’s Earth day is as follows:

Now is a time for unstoppable courage to preserve and protect our health, our families, our livelihoods. Together, we must invest in our planet.

Susan McPeters, a member of the friends of the Wapsi group, emphasized the ways we can invest in our planet on a local level.

“You can support them like this and be more actively involved,” she said. “By being a host in the nature center or taking part in something like this, the annual clean up day.

If you would like to get involved, check out the Wapsi River Center Environmental Education Center’s website for all their available programs and volunteer opportunities.