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Old highway 97 in Lake Country full of garbage

Every pullout along Wood Lake in Lake Country saw plenty of garbage, styrofoam and more
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A clean up of Wood Lake along Pelmewash Parkway found plenty of garbage. - Image: Contributed

It might be part of the plans for the future of Lake Country, but Pelmewash Parkway is acting like a garbage can for those who use its many pull-outs.

Volunteers from World Oceans Day picked up a large bag of styrofoams and plastics at each of the 16 pull offs along Pelmewash Parkway this week.

Pieces of styrofoam coolers, styrofoam cups, plates and take out containers, a realtor sign, plastic water bottles, plastic bags, aluminum cans, some paper products and cigarette butts were picked up along the shoreline and pulled from Wood Lake by the volunteers.

What the volunteers cannot pull out of the lake they said will eventually flow to the Pacific Ocean to add to the severe pollution in the ocean.

The group said along with plastics and styrofoams volunteers picked up thousands of cigarette butts very harmful to fish, if they didn’t start a fire first.

Volunteers said they also find dead fish every time they do a shoreline cleanup.

“The British Columbia government is still responsible for the Pelmewash Parkway along Wood Lake, our original highway, but is doing nothing to keep it clean and the public is not helping at all,” said organizer Debbie White in a release. “Lake Country does not take over the Parkway until 2018. Meanwhile plastics, styrofoams and cigarette butts are killing birds and fish.”

More information and simple things you can do to help our beautiful rivers, lakes and oceans: www.WorldOceansDay.ca