Port O’Connor’s Nature Park, locally known as Boggy Bayou, is enjoyed by fisherman, kayakers, duck hunters, walkers and bird watchers. Enjoyed, that is with the except of the dumped carcasses, trash and yard trimmings. But on Tuesday, December 29 the park got spruced up for the new year. Local volunteers Petra and Ladd Hockey, Karen Barton and Brigid Berger filled large bags with duck, deer and fish carcasses, beer cans, soft drink cups, plastic drink bottles, food wrappers and diligently pried spent shot gun casings from the dirt roads around the park. The Calhoun County work crew did the yeoman’s job hauling away a TV and a freezer used for target practice, a fuel tank, car battery and other large items. They brought out the county back-hole to scrape up dumped palm and oak tree trimmings into piles which they will burn when the weather conditions permit.
“This is a pet-peeve of mine,” said Precinct 4 Commissioner Kenny Finster as he walked the Nature Park picking up trash. The commissioner has promised new signage and increased surveillance: a call to the Sheriff to provide regular drive-thrus and the installation of cameras in the park to capture the culprits for prosecution. Individuals caught littering in Texas can be fined up to $500 for trash less than or equal to 5 lbs. or five gallons. Repeat offense comes with a $2,000 fine and 180 days in jail. Discard more than five pounds and it’s dumping, which carries even steeper fines.
What can YOU do to help keep Boggie Beautiful? First and foremost, DON’T LITTER & DON’T DUMP. Talk to your neighbors and visitors about dumping practices and let them know it’s wrong. Second, report violators. Take a picture, write down their license plate, description of their vehicle, them, what they are dumping, date and time then call the Calhoun County Sherriff’s office 361-553-4646. Littering can also be reported through the Don’t Mess With Texas program website www.DontMesswithTexas.org/Get-Involved/Report-a-Litterer The litterer will receive a letter in the mail and a Don’t Mess with Texas litter bag for their car. Lastly, go out and enjoy Boggie Bayou Nature Park! This county park is there for all of us to enjoy and your presence will dissuade the disgusting and illegal practice of littering and dumping.
Article & photo by Brigid Berger, Mid-Coast Chapter Texas Master Naturalist www.midcoast-tmn.org
