Words by Smiley Team
In 2017, Houston was ravaged by a hurricane – and it’s still facing a level of recovery. Because of this, the waterways around the city have been affected by trash and debris that flow into Port of Houston Turning Basin, before finding their way to Galveston Bay.
One Houston resident has worked to clean up the waterways and support his community.
Known as Bayou Dave, David Rivers works for the Buffalo Bayou Partnership on a mission to clean up the waterways around Houston.
“Established in 1986, Buffalo Bayou Partnership’s geographic focus is the 10-square mile stretch of the bayou that flows from Shepherd Drive, through the heart of downtown into the East End, and onto the Port of Houston Turning Basin,” the BBP wrote on their site.
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Buffalo Bayou Partnership pulled 2,000 cubic yards of trash, the equivalent of 167 commercial dump truck loads, out of the waterways last year, and Bayou Dave is a large part of that, out on the water every week with the BBP’s Clean & Green team.
They collect trash by hand and also by using a special boat called a bio-vac boat that sucks up trash along the surface of the water.
He has posted videos online of the trash buildup in the water and has even appeared talking to Jay Leno on the Kelly Clarkson show.
“Plastic doesn't grow on trees,” he wrote in a Tweet with an accompanying picture during one of his trips. “It gets stuck there, and that's not a pretty picture.”
DONATE: You can donate to the work that Dave does and the Buffalo Bayou Partnership directly.
SUPPORT: Most areas host waterway and beach cleanups. Look into ways to support your community.
