Garbage Island Builds Up Near Rock Park Ahead of Possible Flooding

A small island that has been accumulating trash near Rock Park has some Sparks residents asking what will happen to that trash with possible flooding predicted later this week. 

“I'm just wondering what's going to happen with all of that trash?” asked Sparks resident Chastity Townsend. “Is it going to end up in our river?”

Townsend rides her bike along the river path regularly, and brings her family there on nice days. She said she has seen the trash pile up on that island for more than a year.

"I'm afraid that by allowing my granddaughter to sit in the water, that she might get poked by a needle," Townsend said. "It's time that someone is heard, and that the city take action."

With the river in that area estimated to rise up to eight feet during the storm, Townsend's concerns could turn into a real possibility. City of Sparks officials say they are aware of the situation.

“We are clearly aware of the trash along the river path and are doing the best to clean it up," said Julie Duewel, Community Relations Manager for the City of Sparks. “In fact, we just cleaned up an area near there, taking out about 400 yards of trash.” 

While the issue is on the city’s list, it isn’t clear when cleanup efforts will begin.

“We are doing our best to clean these up while balancing the many other important maintenance duties we have throughout our city,” said Duewel. “While we are not exactly sure when we will begin cleaning this specific area up, our crews are dedicated to the safety and well-being of our city and will get to it as soon as we can. Right now, we are also continuing to clean out our storm drains to minimize any localized flooding and are working with the National Weather Service as we prep for potential flooding this Friday and Saturday.”