Save our Seine pulls mountain of trash from river over summer

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This article was published 23/08/2023 (1009 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Massive amounts of garbage are putting a strain on the Seine.

Every summer since its inception in 1994, Save our Seine, a non-profit organization dedicated to environmental cleanup, collects trash from the river that runs through rural Manitoba into Winnipeg, emptying into the Red River in St. Boniface.

This year a huge quantity of trash, including bicycles, shopping carts and toys were removed from the river, said Ryan Palmquist, managing director of the group.

“There is continuous replenishment of garbage (in the Seine),” Palmquist said. “The years are fairly consistent, (but) the main variable is water levels. This isn’t the lowest water level we’ve ever had, but it’s on the lower end of average.”

The lower water levels expose more garbage, enabling the group to dredge up more trash than in previous years, Palmquist explained.

Save our Seine was founded in response to the pollution in the river in the 1980s, Palmquist said.

“The river was basically used as an industrial and residential dumping ground,” he said. “It was full of trash. Toxic waste, industrial waste, hazardous waste… entire vehicles were in the river.

“It’s fair to say that we have made significant progress from the condition of the river when Save our Seine began.”

Shawn Clark, a professor and head of civil engineering at the University of Manitoba, said any blockage in the Seine would create a risk of flooding.

“Any time you put in something that causes additional resistance in a river or stream or any channel, then the water level becomes higher or is forced to become higher,” Clark explained, adding the Seine is a narrow river and is more sensitive to becoming overwhelmed by trash and other debris than larger water bodies such as the Red River.

Clearing obstructions and debris also helps kayakers and canoists.

Palmquist said the group removed more than 30 obstructions this summer, including 15 log-jams.

SOS is funded through grants and the Canada Summer Jobs program, a federal initiative that pays for employees between the ages of 15 and 29. This year, the group received $30,000 and hired five people at minimum wage for the summer.

Most of the people hired for the summer are university students studying disciplines such as environmental science.

Palmquist said it’s important employees are fit and good with tools.

“The job’s very physical,” he said. “You’re outdoors every day. They’re waist deep in the water, they’re using hand tools, breaking up log-jams, cutting trees, removal of large, heavy objects, often from the back of a boat.”

SOS operates year round and works on various projects to advocate for the preservation of the Seine River Greenway, which includes hiking trails and the Bois-des-Esprits forest, the second-largest urban forest in Winnipeg after Assiniboine Forest.

graham.mcdonald@freepress.mb.ca