‘We get dirty’
Osprey Initiative, a growing business, traps trash in Louisiana bayous — and beyond Future generations of archaeologists are likely to scratch their heads at Monte Sano Park in Scotlandville. In the grass, a toilet bowl lies next to a smoke detector. Nearby, weeds grow through the trunk of a Ford Roadster, parked next to an […]
Geaux Green or geaux home: LSU takes on the game day recycling challenge
LSU students and organizations show what it means to ‘Geaux Green’ on Sunday with post-gameday recycling efforts. Every year LSU participates in the Game Day Recycling Challenge, a national competition between universities to reduce waste during one home football game. This year, it came down to the LSU-Texas A&M matchup. The challenge is a Campus […]
Savannah Riverkeeper installing litter traps across Savannah to track trash in waterways
SAVANNAH, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Savannah Riverkeeper and their partners began their process to install eight litter booms, or traps, in waterways to help reduce plastic pollution. There will also be live-feed cameras tracking storm surge impacts to measure just how much litter flows through the water during any weather events which can help target hotspots as hurricane […]
Intercepting and Preventing Marine Debris in the Waterways of Savannah, Georgia
Savannah Riverkeeper is addressing waterborne litter that affects Georgia’s Ogeechee and Savannah River watersheds using proven trash interception devices, comprehensive data collection, and community engagement. Type of Project: Removal Funding Provided: $560,965 Total Project Amount: $617,015 Region: Southeast Project Dates: October 2024 – March 2028 Who is involved? With support from the NOAA Marine Debris Program, Savannah Riverkeeper is partnering with the Ogeechee […]
16,503 littered plastic bottled and aluminum cans diverted from the landfill during Love The Boot Week
During Love the Boot Week, April 5-13, 2025, Coca-Cola partnered with Keep Louisiana Beautiful (KLB) to spearhead the recycling of plastic bottles and aluminum cans collected at litter cleanup events in 27 parishes. This effort, facilitated by the Osprey Initiative, led to the successful diversion of 16,503 bottles and cans from the landfill – a 23% increase from last […]
Cambridge Gets First Trash Trap to Track Down Choptank Litter
Trash-intercepting devices have been steadily picking up steam in urban waterways on the Chesapeake Bay and around U.S. waters. Baltimore is well known for its “family” of personified Trash Wheels. (In fact, plans for a new Trash Wheel on Back River were just announced). Norfolk installed a floating Seabin at the Nauticus waterfront some years back that captured a big […]
Cambridge Installs Floating Trash Barriers to Clean Up Waterway
CAMBRIDGE, Md. – About 15 bags of trash were pulled from Cambridge Creek on Tuesday as the city installed a new piece of equipment aimed at keeping the waterway clean. Local leaders believe the device will help address the root of the problem. Litter, carried by the current, often stands out against the natural environment. […]
Chattanooga expanding ‘litter boom’ program to Citico Creek
Citico Creek will soon be cleaner. WaterWays, a local nonprofit dedicated to restoring streams, creeks, and rivers, has installed a litter trap to protect against pollution. Back in May 2023, they placed a “litter boom” in the Chattanooga Creek. Since then, they’ve collected 5,600 pounds of floating debris. Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly announced the second creek-cleaner’s […]
Fayetteville to begin cleanup of 10 streams
Cleanup work will begin this week on 10 streams identified as priority areas due to litter accumulation in Fayetteville. The City Council in August approved a $275,000 contract with Osprey Initiative LLC for the project. The one-year agreement includes automatic renewals for four additional years. The contract is part of a broader effort to address litter issues […]
How one company collected 600 lbs. of recyclables at the Magic City Classic + is creating a sustainable Bham
In October, Birmingham’s Legion Field welcomed close to 70,000 fans to watch two Alabama football teams face off in the largest HBCU classic in the nation—the Magic City Classic. But did you know that 14,396 plastic bottles and aluminum cans were collected at the game? Coca-Cola Bottling Company UNITED and Osprey Initiative brought event recycling to […]
Reviving Zacate Creek: Laredo partners with Coca-Cola, Osprey to protect the Rio Grande
The City of Laredo, in collaboration with Coca-Cola Southwest Beverages and Osprey Initiative, has embarked on a groundbreaking environmental initiative to mitigate litter and enhance the natural beauty of Zacate Creek, a 10-mile linear park that meanders through the city and feeds into the Rio Grande. “We’re always honored to come work in Laredo’s water,” […]
City, county install new ‘trash tech’ to help clean up Salado Creek
City and county officials, along with private and public partners, celebrated the introduction of two new litter collection devices into the Salado Creekway system on Friday. The devices, called “litter booms,” are floating barriers designed to capture waste as it flows with the current of the creek, helping prevent debris from spreading further. One device […]
Litter boom deployed across South Bexar County creek; county commissioner envisions more countywide
A litter boom was deployed across Salado Creek at Comanche Park in South Bexar County on Friday, the first of many hoped for by Precinct 4 County Commissioner Tommy Calvert. During a creekside news conference at the park, Calvert said the deployment is a partnership between the county, waterway protector River Aid San Antonio, the […]
First phase of Stormwater Litter Management Plan initiated for Capitol Lake
BATON ROUGE, La. — The first phase of a stormwater litter management plan for Capitol Lake was launched on Oct. 7, marking a significant step in addressing plastic pollution in one of Baton Rouge’s critical water systems. Capitol Lake, a 70-acre, man-made, retention basin, has been plagued by severe litter and sediment accumulation due to […]
Osprey Initiative Announces First Impact Report
We are thrilled to share a significant milestone for Osprey Initiative: the release of our very first Impact Report! This comprehensive report highlights the achievements we made in 2023, reflecting our ongoing mission to bridge the gap between intent and action in sustainability. Here’s a glimpse of what you can expect in the report: How […]
Fairhope accepting recycled glass into concrete for Flying Creek Nature Preserve
FAIRHOPE — The City of Fairhope is partnering with the Osprey Initiative to collect recyclable glass products to be turned into concrete for Flying Creek Nature Preserve and is accepting glass until Oct 4. “This is the first time that we’ve done anything like this in Fairhope,” said Nicole Love, grants coordinator for the city. […]
Collaborating to clean up Monte Sano Bayou
BATON ROUGE, La.—The Louisiana Stormwater Coalition (LSC), LSU AgCenter Botanic Gardens, BREC and ExxonMobil successfully “Bashed the Trash” at Monte Sano Bayou, located in north Baton Rouge near Interstate 110 and ExxonMobil’s facility earlier this month. Monte Sano Bayou is part of the BREC park system and is on LSC’s list of critical stormwater demonstration […]
Catch It If You Can: New ‘Litter Gitter’ Installed to Capture Trash Before It Reaches Bayview Lake
Don Bates was born to be an outdoorsman. His family in Louisiana was composed of commercial fishermen, largely catching catfish and crabs. “I grew up doing that for fun,” he said. “My life has been around water. It’s always been around water.” It was that love of water that moved Bates to found Osprey Initiative and to […]
Osprey Initiative workers remove litter from Buck Creek
ALABASTER – A group of workers joined together on Friday, July 12 to work to keep Alabaster’s Buck Creek clean as part of a continued partnership between the city of Alabaster and Osprey Initiative. The city of Alabaster has partnered with Osprey Initiative for years to keep Buck Creek clean and the city saw workers […]
Mobile Bay Magazine’s 5th Annual Watershed Awards
Mobile Bay’s Annual Honor recognizes the environmental guardians of our communities. Coastal Alabama’s waterways are as diverse as the people who love them. Baldwin and Mobile counties contain streams, rivers, lakes, ponds, bayous and the Gulf of Mexico. Our H20, salty or fresh, teams with fish and wildlife from tadpoles to sharks. But do not […]
Tangi embarks on groundbreaking anti-litter project at local festival
Tangipahoa Parish President Robby Miller said #TeamTangi litter crews, local volunteers, and representatives from the Osprey Initiative were on site at the Independence Sicilian Heritage Festival all weekend long, collecting trash and sorting materials for recycling. The project marks a first for Tangipahoa Parish’s spring festivals, thanks to a Greener Grounds grant from Keep Louisiana […]
City’s recycling hubs on parade route lets revelers catch-and-release their throws
Recycle Dat is returning to the Uptown parade route during the two major weekends of Carnival 2024. Recycle Dat will operate both Recycling Hubs and Can Stations during the daytime parades for the next two Saturdays and Sundays. Six stationary Recycling Hubs for beer and soft drink cans, beads and glass can be found between […]
Use new blue recycling bins in north shore state parks
This pilot project is made possible through a grant from the Louisiana Beverage Association, whose member companies say they manufacture 100% recyclable bottles and cans, and in coordination with the Pontchartrain Conservancy and the Osprey Initiative.
Recycling pilot project launched at four Louisiana State Parks
Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser and the Louisiana Office of State Parks announced Tuesday the launch of the Let Louisiana Shine Park Recycling Program, a new recycling pilot project for aluminum cans and #1 PET plastic bottles at four state parks.
Newest litter gitter in Pinson does more than pick up trash, it builds community
For Charline Whyte, the latest installation of a litter gitter on Beaver Creek at Bicentennial Park in Pinson, Alabama gave her goosebumps. For years, Charline, her twin sister Catherine Whyte and fellow volunteer David Randolph have religiously picked up litter along the banks of Beaver Creek and Turkey Creek. Their efforts, which also included organizing roadside litter cleanups, […]
New floating ‘litter boom’ aims to keep Chattanooga Creek clean
A floating boom will work to keep Chattanooga Creek clean by catching litter and other debris.
Floating litter collection device installed on Chattanooga Creek
Chattanooga Creek is now home to a litter boom, a floating trash collection device installed Tuesday near the Wheland trailhead of the Tennessee Riverwalk. “We have 180,000 residents in addition to all those visitors and tourists who come through, which, as you can imagine, can lead to … a lot of litter,” Maria Price, engineering […]
Davenport looking for spring cleanup volunteers
Last summer, Davenport participated in a pilot project to install four “litter gitters” in creeks that would catch garbage and record data to figure out the biggest litter sources and locations.
Cleanup removes 10 acres of trash from Burden wetland
Alabama-based environmental contractor Osprey Initiative was contracted to remove and study the trash at the Burden.
Ten acres of litter removed from Burden wetland
Osprey will work with the LSU AgCenter and Tricoeur Engineering Services to determine where to strategically place different devices to test their efficiency in catching litter before it flows into the Burden wetland.