Hundreds of tires removed from water
BY KYLE LOVERN
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN
WARFIELD-KERMIT — Volunteers waded the Tug Fork River in the Warfield and Kermit area to clean up old tires — some that had been in the water for many years.
John Burchett, a member of Friends of the Tug Fork River and a commissioner on the West Virginia Flatwater Trail Commission, said officials always attempt to pick a time of the year when weather conditions would seem to be the best. The weather has not always cooperated, but the second cleanup day for the Warfield-Kermit area was Thursday. The first day was Aug. 29.
“It was a beautiful day in the river with a lot of different organizations that came together for a hard day’s work to help with the tire recovery effort,” Burchett said. “The stretch of river upstream of the Warfield boat ramp is now pretty much free of tires. We recovered 211 today and 640 Aug. 29 for a two-day total of 851 tires.
“More tires will likely be exposed as the silt and sand on the river bottom shifts over time. We will come back again next year if needed,” he added.
“We heard from local people that the majority of the tires in this particular location of the river came from an old nearby service station — which is now out of business — that supposedly dumped old tires in the river for several years,” Burchett said. “The majority of the tires we found there were mostly passenger car and small truck tires and had been in the river for decades, just like we found in Williamson.”
He said some of the old rubber tires had been in the river so long that they just pulled apart when volunteers put a hook in them to break them loose from the muddy and sandy bottom of the river.
A Hydratrek amphibious vehicle helped with the tire removal. Workers also used several aluminum jon boats.
Several volunteers helped with the tire cleanup, including those from the Kermit Volunteer Fire Department, Warfield Volunteer Fire Department, Martin County, City of Warfield, the Human Resources Development Foundation (WV), and the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection REAP (Rehabilitation Environmental Action Plan).
The second day was originally scheduled for the week of Sept. 5, but weather conditions forced the cancellation of that date.
Two cleanup dates are scheduled for the West Williamson area, Sept. 20-22. Hundreds of tires were cleaned up in that section of the river last summer.
