Turkey Creek Sanctuary, 130 acres of lush, pristine Florida, unfortunately has an unsightly side threatening its natural
wonderland.
Turkey Creek often ends up both as the dumping ground for trash and a haven for the unwanted exotic pets of Palm Bay.
In his 14 years as sanctuary ranger, Oli Johnson has trapped exotic animals and fished out all types and forms of garbage.
"We've found everything from prairie dogs to iguanas," he said.
Although it's a never-ending job to keep the place clean, Johnson is grateful that at least for now he has been spared
one gruesome type of recovery.
"We've yet to find a body," Johnson said.
Johnson is also thankful that "green" organizations like Brevard Community College's Environmental Club and the Turtle
Coast Chapter of the Sierra Club make his job easier with trash bashes at the sanctuary.
"They do an excellent job," he said.
Like clockwork, the Sierra Club sponsors quarterly canoe cleanups at the sanctuary. The next one is coming up next Saturday
and the club is looking for volunteers.
The C-1 Canal is the primary culprit in the trashing of Turkey Creek.
"Palm Bay is crisscrossed with canals and people dump garbage into the canals," said Johnson.
The canals feed into the 20-foot deep, 200-foot wide C-1 Canal, which in turn meanders into Turkey Creek after it passes
a dam.
For the stormwater and the junk it carries, it's a 3-mile journey from dam to the Indian River Lagoon. The tight bends
on the creek serve to pile up the trash, good for the lagoon but not for Turkey Creek.
The creek's shallow waters effectively stop the flow of garbage.
"Everything you put into the canal gets snagged into Turkey Creek," Johnson said. "The flood plain serves as a comb."
With six canoes, eight kayaks and a 16-foot motorboat to act as garbage scow, Johnson and his volunteer cleanup crews painstakingly
try to keep the creek spotless.
It's an uphill -- or up-creek--battle, for they've found enough castoff junk to fill many dumpsters.
Want furniture? People have dumped enough to outfit several homes.
Old tires, lumber, water heaters, barbecues, kiddie pools and assorted sporting goods are regular castoffs, Johnson said.
Johnson shakes his head, mystified as to the reason people choose to dump stuff in the canals instead of placing it out
on the curb with the rest of the trash.
The end, unfortunately, is nowhere in sight.
"As Palm Bay continues to grow, you'll see more and more freshwater runoff into the Creek," he said.
And more trash.
Contact Asst. Metro Editor Patrick Peterson at 242-3573 or ppeterson@brevard.gannett.com.
