Lake Ouachita cleanup scheduled for Saturday

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Friends of Lake Ouachita will host their yearly lake cleanup from 8 to 11 a.m. Saturday.

Volunteers can sign in and receive supplies for the cleanup at the Tompkins Bend Day Use Area on Shangri La Drive, off Highway 270 west, a news release said.

“We’ve done it for several years,” Jo West Taylor, FOLO event coordinator, said.

“Towards the end of the summer, it seems like everything washes into the bays, especially around the marinas. So, we decided to get community involvement and maybe there would be less trash here.

“And there seems to be, because we put out a thing called Grab a Bag. It’s helped a lot on our continual cleanup,” she said.

For the Grab a Bag program, FOLO placed free trash bags on each boat launching lane.

“After you are through enjoying the lake for the day, you can leave all of the trash on the ramp as you leave, and the Corps of Engineers picks it up,” Taylor said, “but there’s always some at the end of the summer that, you know, just eventually end up in the bays … and that’s what we’re cleaning up.”

Volunteers are encouraged to bring their own grabbers, latex or cotton gloves, and sun shields and will clean around the shoreline with all trash collected left at the boat ramp for pickup, the release said.

“We do care about the lake, Taylor said. “We are real fortunate to have that lake right here in our back door. And it’s real important that we keep it pristine. A little bit every year helps a lot.”

Those who cannot meet on Saturday can also register for another day, but are encouraged to call, she said.

Those interested in volunteering with Keep Arkansas Beautiful Commission and the Keep America Beautiful can contact Taylor at 501-622-9745, or Jerry Shields, FOLO board president, at 501-276-5006.