Volunteers clean up 75 acres of public land near the Menan Butte
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MENAN – Volunteers with the Snake River Offroaders Club and the Upper Snake River Bureau of Land Management Office met for a recent cleanup project near the Menan Butte.
On Sept. 28, dozens of volunteers cleaned a total of 75 acres west of the North Menan Butte where Desert Ride Road intersects with ID Highway 33. Together, they reclaimed “three major shooting lanes (on the gun range) of shooting debris and junk.”
“We were able to make an immense impact on the environment at the butte,” SRO Vice President Erica Brunson writes in a news release. “SRO leadership is very impressed that members of the public showed up to help with this event. This area is beautiful and should be enjoyed by all.”
The cleanup project happened in conjunction with National Public Lands Day.
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The club hosted a similar project in May along Hell’s Half Acre trail in Shelley. Volunteers cleaned up more than 8,400 pounds of trash. Another 980 pounds of scrap metal and appliances were also removed.
RELATED | Volunteers clean up over 8,400 pounds of trash from local trail
Snake River Offroaders was formed in 1999. It’s a nonprofit that promotes offroading on trails throughout eastern Idaho. Helping the BLM maintain eastern Idaho’s public lands through clean up projects is part of its mission.
“Garbage dumping and non-use of an area are the primary reasons we lose public lands access. Events like this help to keep access open,” Brunson explains.
SRO land use officer Curtis Funnell expresses his gratitude for those who attended to help with this project.
“I’m glad to see so many folks enjoying our public land and even though I wish more would pick up after themselves, it’s refreshing to see so many come out and spend their free time tidying up for all of our continued enjoyment. A huge thanks to you and all others who leave things a little better than they found them,” Funnell says.
Snake River Offroaders Club is hosting a scenic run at Mahogany Peak near Monteview on Nov. 9. Details about this and other future events are available here.
The Snake River Offroading Club meets the first Thursday of every month at Homestead Pizza & Bowling at 1770 West Broadway in Idaho Falls. It starts at 7 p.m. and is open to the public.
Visit the website or Facebook page for more information.