Posted on Jan 13, 2025 | Blog,News
Healthy Communities Spotlight: Keep Covington Beautiful
The area before the litter cleanup.
The Keep Louisiana Beautiful Healthy Communities Grant provides funding for local projects and programs that bring about the behavioral changes needed to improve the appearance of communities in Louisiana. This spotlight focuses on one of the recent recipients of a Healthy Communities Grant, Keep Covington Beautiful (KCB). On Friday, December 13, 2024, in collaboration with Osprey Initiative, KCB completed the installation of a litter boom and two litter float lines on the Mile Branch waterway.
“Keep Covington Beautiful is setting an example for the Covington community and the entire state of Louisiana,” said Susan Russell, KLB Executive Director. “We must take care of our waterways, as they are vital to the health of our people, land, and wildlife. I hope the litter booms, float lines, and cleanups bring attention to the issue of litter and inspire people to do better.”
Litter in the rivers and streams in the City of Covington has been a noticeable issue, with an average of 300 pounds collected yearly during the annual Bogue Falaya River Sweep cleanups since 2021. To protect the Scenic Tchefuncte River from litter, a litter boom was previously installed in the Mile Branch, a main tributary of the Tchefuncte. The litter boom is a tactical in-stream device that intercepts floating litter from stormwater runoff. The boom allows wildlife, canoes, and kayaks to navigate over or under it, and the device collects an average of 10 pounds per bi-monthly cleanup.
In December, a new litter boom was installed in the river at W. 22nd Ave., and two litter float lines were also installed near N. Collins Blvd. and Pine View Middle School. The float lines help collect litter and slow down the water for the boom’s collection during heavy rain events. Osprey and KCB accessed the river on foot and by kayak. During the installation, Osprey and KCB performed a tactical cleanup around the areas where the devices were stationed. In total, they removed 303.15 lbs of litter and debris from the Mile Branch.
Osprey cleaning up litter.
Since 2004, Keep Louisiana Beautiful has awarded over $7.7 million in grants to local communities in the areas of litter abatement, waste reduction, recycling, and environmental education. Learn more about the Healthy Communities Grant program on KLB’s website.
The new litter boom installed.
