Volunteers from various organizations came together to clean up the shoreline and river bed of the Chassahowitzka River as part of an annual shoreline cleanup event. Boy Scouts, members of the diving organization SCUBAnauts, and representatives from local government agencies removed trash and debris from both the land and underwater areas. The cleanup provided an opportunity for the youth volunteers to learn about the river ecosystem while helping beautify and protect the environment.

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Volunteers spruce up Chassahowitzka River
By Taylor Provost
Volunteers of all ages met Sunday at the Chassahowitzka Boat Ramp to clean the shoreline and river
bed as part of the annual shoreline cleanup week.
Members of SCUBAnaut, Boy Scout Troop 302 from Inverness and volunteers from the Florida Water
Management District and Citrus County Parks and Recreation arrived at 9 a.m. with diving equipment,
canoes and kayaks to pick up trash and debris from the river’s banks.
“It’s a beautiful river and we want to keep it beautiful,” said Regina Epple, wife of Scoutmaster Steve
Epple. About 13 scouts and five adults canoed along a half-mile stretch of the river, picking up trash as
they went. They then sorted the trash to be taken to the county landfill.
The Tarpon Springs chapter of SCUBAnauts brought 30 kids and adults to assist in the clean-up from
under the water. The dive was also a chance for the SCUBAnauts to learn about the river’s ecosystem
as part of their training.
“I love oceanography and marine science,” said Morgan Liston, 17, who has been a member of
SCUBAnauts for almost three years. “I’m definitely going to have a scientific career and SCUBAnauts
has helped me grow my love and passion for science.”
Groups of three kids and three adults took turns boating out to the spring vent near the Chassahowitzka
Boat Ramp, where they removed bottles, cans, plastic bags and small pieces of wood along the bottom.
Keith Kolassa, senior environmental specialist for the Southwest Florida Water Management District,
worked with the group to organize the event. He said the clean-up would be good preparation for a
larger dredging project planned for the spring later this year.
Several marine scientists were also on hand to teach the SCUBAnauts and their accompanying parents
about the river. Chris Moses, who regularly dives with the group, said he hoped the day would begin a
lasting relationship between the group and the river.
“What we’re doing today is just taking care of the spot. It’s important (for them) from a standpoint of
learning to take care of the environment,” said Moses. “We look forward to monitoring different
indicators of the health (of the site).”
SCUBAnauts was started in 2001 in Palm Harbor by retired Navy Capt. Dave Olson. The nonprofit
organization is for 12- through 18-year-olds interested in learning about marine science through diving
exploration. The organization, which has three chapters in the state, have explored in the Bahamas and
Hawaii in the past, and run entirely on donations and grants.
SO YOU KNOW
— For more information about SCUBAnauts, visit the Web site, www.scubanautsintl.org, or contact
Tarpon Springs chapter president Mike Waugh at (727) 460-2619 .
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