MOBILE, Ala. (WPMI) Just eight weeks after it was installed, the city of Mobile’s litter trap on Eslava Creek is broken.
With galvanized steel poles askew and half of the trap sticking up out of the water, the city may have to completely reinstall the $36,000 system.
Overnight rain proved too much for the trap to handle Monday. There were high hopes for the system to help clean up the city’s garbage-choked waterways.
“This is a huge disappointment,” Kim Sweet of Dog River Clearwater Revival, told Local 15.
Dog River Clearwater Revival is the local environmental group that lobbied and raised thousands of dollars for a litter trip. The group recommended a much more expensive litter trap to the tune of more than $100,000, but the city opted for a cheaper alternative and paid for it themselves.
“Because of this massive failure so early on, we are not very optimistic about this actually being a permanent solution,” Sweet said.
Sweet said it’s concerning how quickly the trap broke, considering it’s not even rainy season yet.
“This system was a pilot,” Sweet said. “We’re learning along the way just like the city is learning.”
