The Cy Falls Conservation Club took a trip to a local park on Saturday to clean up trash and debris, furthering their goal of reducing pollution and preserving the environment.

The park that the group of six traveled to was recently flooded which led to massive amounts of trash being riddled throughout the land. Club Historian and Social Media Manager Emily Morgan (11) was one of the six who participated in the cleanup event on Saturday.

“A lot of people’s trash bags floated down the hill and ended up getting caught in a bush or tree,” Morgan said. “So we found a lot of full trash bags.”

According to the club sponsor and biology teacher, Ben Herzog, this was the first cleanup event the group had held, so the club wasn’t setting any major goals, but as always, safety was key.

“We had people picking up trash and a couple of parents provided food, water, and a base for our operation,” Herzog said. “Our primary goal was safety. We also wanted to remove some trash, which we achieved.”

Club President, Marcus Coyle (11), volunteers with Sea Center Texas and is a member of the Galveston Bay Foundation. He has been a long-time advocate for the conservation of wetland environments.

“Taking care of mother nature and all of the creatures brought me to the path of conservation,” Coyle said. “I think people should know that this is a community of people working together for a common goal, we are a diverse group of students with different ideas and personalities, which makes us a really solid group.”

 The event had been in the works for a long time according to club members. All of them worked together in meetings to figure out exactly what they wanted to do and accomplish.

“I think all the club officers played a role in deciding that we should do cleanups,” Coyle said. “In the beginning, I mentioned that we should do a beach cleanup, but then for now we decided as a group to start off slow by doing more local things.”

Anghela Lopez (10), a club photographer, has always been passionate about nature and was one of the members who participated in the cleanup on Saturday. Following the event, she had some time to think back on the group’s efforts.

“This organization, I feel, isn’t so uptight and serious. We can all be comfortable around each other and we can laugh and get along while doing something good,” Lopez said. “I am proud of us for the cleanup, although it was one bayou out of the millions just in Houston, it’s a start, and we played our part to help.”

The Conservation Club meets twice a month and has a couple of other events planned. Herzog hopes to partner with Sea Center Texas and Galveston Bay Foundation to help out with some beach and wetlands cleanups along with some opportunities to educate the public.