The City of Homewood installed a “litter gitter” device in Griffin Brook today near the intersection of Broadway Street and Redfern Street.
Homewood is working with Osprey Initiative, Freshwater Land Trust, and the Cahaba Riverkeeper to create a plan for cleaner local waterways.
Litter gitters are in-stream trash collection devices used to intercept floating litter from stormwater runoff. In addition to installing and maintaining the litter gitters, Osprey Initiative collects the trash in each device on a weekly or bi-weekly basis and recycles as much of the trash as possible.
“Osprey Initiative is excited to continue testing our products and services in the watersheds of the Greater Birmingham area,” said Don Bates, owner of Osprey Initiative. “This grant will support the good work that has already occurred in this area and the shared vision of the communities that benefit from these valuable waterways.”
In December 2019, Birmingham’s first litter gitter was installed at the headwaters of Valley Creek as part of a three-month pilot project between Freshwater Land Trust, Osprey Initiative, and the River Network in Boulder, Colorado. The device trapped an average of 50 pounds of litter a month, of which about 40% was recycled.
Freshwater Land Trust and partners were recently awarded a $500,000 grant over three years from the Environmental Protection Agency’s Trash-Free Waters program to fund six litter gitters throughout Greater Birmingham, including an additional device in Homewood to be installed near Brookwood Mall later this year.