United Methodists target ‘clean sweep’ on Earth Day
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The Rev. Charlie West (center) collects discarded
electronics during the 2006 Earth Keeper Clean Sweep in Marquette, Mich.
This year’s Earth Day cleanup is set for April 21 and will target old
medicines. UMNS file photos by Greg Peterson.
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By Greg Peterson*
April 2, 2007 | MARQUETTE, Mich. (UMNS)
Church member Joanne Mingay (left) and the Rev. Margaret West wrap old and broken computers.
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For the third straight year, thousands of northern Michigan United
Methodists are being asked to protect the planet by participating in a
hazardous materials clean sweep on Earth Day.
This year, the target is out-of-date and unwanted pharmaceuticals.
Upper Peninsula United Methodists are part of an environmental army
that includes the vast majority of the northern Michigan religious
community, university students, several environmental groups and an
American Indian tribe. The previous two clean sweeps collected almost
400 tons of hazardous waste for recycling or proper disposal.
Collecting old medicines will not require a lot of heavy lifting,
according to the Rev. Grant Lobb, Marquette District superintendent for
The United Methodist Church, "but the result will be cleaner rivers,
streams, lakes and tap water for all."
For Lobb, the clean sweep is much more personal this year. "I learned
recently that I am going to be a grandfather," he explained. "May our
efforts help in providing a clean, healthy future for my grandchild's
entire generation."
Common concern
The third annual Earth Keeper Clean Sweep on April 21 is sponsored by
nine faith communities with 130,000 members – about 40 percent of Upper
Peninsula residents – along with the Superior Watershed Partnership,
the nonprofit Cedar Tree Institute and the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community
(KBIC).
"I am so pleased that the United Methodists in Northern Michigan can
once again join with other faith communities and concerned citizens of
all ages by putting our words into action in the constant fight against
pollution," said Lobb.
KBIC Tribal Council President Susan LaFernier is asking all tribe
members to join fellow residents in dropping off old or unwanted
pharmaceuticals.
"We are all responsible for taking care of the precious environment
that has been given to us from our Creator," said LaFernier, a long-time
member of the 175-year-old Zeba Indian Mission United Methodist Church.
The proud great-great-granddaughter of a Methodist missionary during
the 1800s, LaFernier said the Earth Keeper Initiative has forged a
stronger bond between the tribe and religious communities. Besides
United Methodists, the other faith communities are Catholic, Episcopal,
Lutheran, Presbyterian, Unitarian Universalist, Baha'i, Jewish and Zen
Buddhist.
"The stories about deformed frogs or abnormalities in fish ought to
really trouble us," said the Rev. Charlie West, pastor of Grace United
Methodist Church in Marquette and project director of the first clean
sweep. "These chemicals just keep building up in our environment. It's
nice that the churches are helping keep some of them out of the water."
Targeting medicines
Carl Lindquist, executive director of the Superior Watershed
Partnership, says this year’s clean sweep is targeting medicines because
trace amounts of pharmaceuticals are turning up in America's drinking
water. Most water treatment plants are not designed to filter out these
medications, he said.
"We are all responsible for taking care of the precious environment that has been given to us from our Creator."
-Susan LaFernier
When pills or liquid medicines are poured down the sink or flushed
down the toilet, they remain diluted in the water supply after treatment
and these trace amounts are suspected of causing a range of health
problems, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
"As leftover and waste pharmaceuticals get flushed down drains,
research is showing that they are increasingly being detected in our
lakes and rivers at levels that could be causing harm to the environment
and ecosystem," said Elizabeth LaPlante, senior manager for the EPA
Great Lakes National Programs Office in Chicago.
"Specifically, reproductive and development problems in aquatic
species, hormonal disruption and antibiotic resistance are some concerns
associated with pharmaceuticals in our wastewater," she explained.
The 2007 clean sweep is backed by many pharmacists and numerous law
enforcement agencies including the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration
and Michigan Sheriff's Association.
Pharmacists and law enforcement officers will be present on April 21
at all collection sites, which will be open from 9 a.m. to noon local
time, to ensure security and proper collection of the pharmaceuticals,
according to Lindquist.
For a complete list of participating communities and Earth Keeper collection sites, visit www.superiorwatersheds.org and click on Earth Keepers. For more information, call the Superior Watershed Partnership at (906) 228-6095 or e-mail earthkeeper@charter.net.
*Peterson is a local news reporter and volunteer media adviser for Earth Keeper.
News media contact: Linda Bloom, New York, (646) 369-3759 or newsdesk@umcom.org.
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Earth Day Sunday 2007 Theme: The Food that Sustains Us
Resources
Superior Watershed Partnership
Earthkeepers TV
Lake Superior Interfaith Network
Earth Day Network |