Environmentalists Gather To Clean Up Mile Run

Volunteers from a number of environmental organizations within and without Franklin Township gathered at Mile Run on Hamilton Street April 9 to give the creek a sprucing up.

The waterway lies at the border of Franklin and New Brunswick.

The effort was spearheaded by members of the Franklin Township Environmental Commission.

Commission member Stanislaz Jaracz said that more than 100 people showed up to the event.

“We had about 70 volunteers right here, and another group of about 35 volunteers on Somerset Street,” he said. “The other group was focused on Spanish-speaking people.”

Jaracz said the group “collected a huge amount of garbage … we have collected recyclables, non-recyclables, two TVs, a bed frame, blankets, tarps, glass, aluminum.”

Joining the Environmental Commission members were volunteers from groups including the New Brunswick Environmental Commission, the Lower Raritan Watershed Partnership, the Central Jersey Stream Clean Team, Friends of Mile Run, Watershed ambassadors and the Watershed Institute, Jaracz said.

Also on hand were employees from the township-based Whitman Environmental Cleanup company, who donated refreshments, Jaracz said. Another sponsor was California-based Aptera, a manufacturer of solar electric cars, he said.

Jaracz said the streams the Commission members clean rotates from year to year.

“We monitor the streams,” he said.

Here are some scenes from the event:

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