“It’s amazing
how much
trash
accumulates
in just two
miles.”
Scouts from Troop 248 have a long
record of winning awards for completing
conservation projects and promoting
environmental awareness, Taylor says.
For more than 10 years, the troop has
conducted an aluminum recycling
program, and they also recycled paper and
glass until the Oakdale Borough took over
that service.
The troop recently repaired and
repainted the trailer they use to collect
aluminum cans. It is now located next to
the Oakdale municipal building and Taylor
says the trailer holds several hundred
pounds of cans. About four times a year
the scouts take the trailer to a recycler
and, depending on the price of aluminum,
receive between $300 and $900 each trip.
They use the money to fund a summer
camping program. Oakdale residents have
also started to contribute to the recycling
program too, Taylor says.
“A lot of people are catching on and are
saving cans themselves and bringing them
down,” he says. “Recycling sources means
we don’t have to dig a big hole to get to
it. It’s a lot easier to recycle than to mine
bauxite. Plus it saves energy.”
Scouts from Troop 248 also applied
caution signs to the 300 storm drains
in Oakdale that warn residents against
dumping oil or other chemicals into the
watershed. Over the last few years, efforts
to reduce pollution have brought fish and
wildlife back to Robinson Run, Taylor
says.
“For a long while, when I was a kid,
there were no fish in the creek,” he says.
“Kingfishers need clean water and now
they’re back on the creek too, just a block
down the road from my house.”
Other activities include planting trees
on Arbor Day and the members of Troop
248 also recently completed a month-long
sustainability program. The scouts from
Troop 248 also remove trash from a twomile section of McKee Road in Oakdale
several times a year.
“It’s amazing how much trash
accumulates in just two miles,” Taylor says.
“Look at all the stuff people are throwing
out the window. If we can get one person
to dispose of things properly, we’ve won.
Anything we can do to make a little bit of
an impact can go a long way.”
Taylor says he emphasizes the
importance of conservation and
environmental stewardship because they
are key elements in scouting. For example,
the scouts practice “pack it in, pack it out”
when they go camping in order to ensure
that other visitors can enjoy the outdoors.
“I love the outdoors and I want to save
as much of it as I can,” Taylor says. “If we
can set an example for other people to
follow, it makes it better for everybody.” n
West Allegheny | Summer 2016 | icmags.com 25