Volunteers collect 2,000 pounds of debris from Swannanoa River in Earth Day cleanup
Volunteers with MountainTrue work to remove debris from the Swannanoa River in Asheville
By Ed DiOrio
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ASHEVILLE, North Carolina (WLOS) — On a typical Earth Day, volunteers cleaning the area around them will likely find plastic, bottles, and maybe some paper items. However, this Tuesday in Asheville was not a usual Earth Day.
“The call felt, obviously, like it was in response to Helene,” volunteer Marilyn Rosenberg said.
Rosenberg was one of nearly 20 volunteers brought to the banks of the Swannanoa River by MountainTrue.
When the day was over, their piles were significant.
“We probably collected somewhere in the neighborhood of 2,000 pounds of debris,” coordinator Jon Stamper told News13. “We’ve been picking up hand-pickable trash. This represents a couple of days’ worth of work. We’re consolidating it all into a good pile.”
That’s because 2025 did not leave just paper and plastic.
“I just hauled up a piece of pipe, plastic and a long pipe,” Rosenberg described. “I think what was stunning was literally chunks of a wall of bricks that you’d see. I was working alongside a young woman who was working in a factory in Hendersonville that made the stripping that goes around windows. She’s pulling it out of this debris.”
“We’re seeing parts of folks’ homes, debris from cars, large machinery,” Stamper added. “The debris is dramatically different from what we would’ve seen a year before the storm. It really does hit harder than it used to. We still have a long way to go with our cleanup efforts.” That is what workers and volunteers have been seeing for nearly seven months, which is why MountainTrue is trying to expand.
“We’re looking to expand our paid workforce to continue the operations that we have now,” Stamper said Tuesday. “In House Bill 47, there was some additional money that goes to debris removal needs that weren’t met by state and federal. We see as MountainTrue as a great entity to help with that.”
This Earth Day operation was intended to help not just the environment, but also the future of recovery in the mountains.
“We’re going to seek funding through state, federal, local and private donations,” Stamper said. “Our goal is to expand our work force and meet the needs of the region. That includes all of Western North Carolina.” “The need has always been there,” Rosenberg said. “Now, it’s extremely great. All I could think of when I was going back to the tent today was, ‘When are we doing this again?’”
While MountainTrue carried out their effort on Tuesday, Explore Asheville is going to clean up five different areas around the city on Monday, April 28.
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