Treat helping to clean river

PRICHARD, Idaho – Three years ago, two neighbors found themselves commiserating about trash along the banks of the North Fork of the Coeur d’Alene River.

Peg Hammeren was disgusted by the broken bottles and cans she found in the blue-ribbon trout stream, which draws anglers and rafters from all over the Inland Northwest. Her friend Terrann Tester, a fire prevention technician for the U.S. Forest Service, told her about finding abandoned campfires on the shore, smoldering with wet garbage.

Together, the two women created a program that rewards river users for packing out their garbage. Tester passes out plastic bags printed with a Smokey Bear logo, which are paid for by grant dollars. People who bring a full bag of garbage to the Dumpster at H&H Riverstop, a convenience store that Hammeren owns near prichard, receive a free soft-serve ice cream cone.

The store has given away about 500 ice cream cones this year. Shoshone County, meanwhile, has spent about $2,000 emptying the Dumpster, which will operate through the end of hunting season this fall. The program has made a dent in trash along the river, according to the women. But river users need to take more responsibility for keeping the area clean, they said.

“I used to say that 95 percent of people were great, but I’m down to 65 percent,” Tester said. “What bothers me is that there is no respect for the land. It’s a sad situation.”

Tester put out 70 unattended fires this year, hauled off 5-gallon buckets filled with human waste, and collected needles and a discarded fax machine.

“I also found three shot-up TV sets this year. What’s with that?” she said.

Mike Biotti, Shoshone County’s solid waste director, credits the women for their work. The Dumpster has been emptied 21 times since Memorial Day. The county plans to continue the program and expand it as needed, he said.

Hammeren has started taking donations to offset the Dumpster’s cost. The contributions come in $1 and $2 increments. She has forwarded $360 in donations to the county. She encourages people from outside the area to pay their share of garbage collection.

“Our Dumpster is really appreciated, but people have to realize that it comes from our tax dollars,” Hammeren said.

For more information on the Dumpster program, contact H&H Riverstop at (208) 682-4317.