Jakob Smith / The Collegian

A flatbed truck approached the RiverTree Volunteers̢۪ cleanup site, just steps away from the San Joaquin River. It was filled with tractor tires, wood scraps, debris and more than a dozen large plastic bags filled with every kind of trash imaginable. And this was just one truckload.

“This all came from just the tops of the bluffs,â€Â said Jana Leiran, fish and wildlife interpreter with the California Department of Fish and Game.

She and three of her colleagues were among the 113 volunteers who teamed up with RiverTree Volunteers on Saturday to participate in the California Coastal Cleanup Day. According to Leiran, this particular truckload of trash was picked up by approximately 42 students from Edison High School, who were also volunteering on Saturday.

Driving the truck was Mark Somma, political science professor at California State University, Fresno. Forty Fresno State students from Somma̢۪s environmental service learning class, Political Science 157, spent time working at the cleanup site over the weekend.

“We’ll do five or six of these [cleanups] this semester, along with other projects,â€Â Somma said.

Trash is nothing new for the director of RiverTree Volunteers Richard Sloan. He has seen more litter in the San Joaquin River than most people could imagine.

One year, he said they saved all the flip-flops and sandals they found. They filled four large trash bags.

“It’s amazing how many shoes we find,â€Â Sloan said.

According to Sloan, there is no telling what objects might be discovered in the river.

“We find stolen cars all the time,â€Â Sloan said.

On one occasion several years ago, Sloan recalled finding 22 bags of marijuana floating down the river, weighing between six and seven pounds each. Sloan says the origin of the drugs is still a mystery.

But of all trash, the most commonly found items in the river are tires.

According to Sloan, RiverTree reached a milestone on Saturday. They removed their 5000th tire from the San Joaquin River and its banks since the organization was founded on March 10, 2003. These tires have ranged in size, from average car tires to tractor tires weighing hundreds of pounds each.

Jakob Smith / The Collegian

This weekend alone, Sloan expected that four tons of tires would be removed. He blames bad disposal policy for the massive amount of tires that are polluting the river.

The problem, Sloan said, is that people are charged a fee to dispose of their old tires. So instead of paying for something that they no longer have any use for, they just dump them.

He said that a deposit should be required when purchasing tires, like the deposits made on soda cans and bottles, that would be refunded to people when they properly disposed of their used tires.

“If people were getting deposits back, there’s no way they would be dumping them,â€Â Sloan said. “As of now, you’ve got to pay to buy [the tires] and pay to get rid of them.â€Â

Along with the other trash, most of the tires are removed from the river and transported back to the shore by canoe.

At another spot, approximately a mile from the main site, volunteers spent the earlier parts of the day disassembling and removing two boats that had been stuck in the river for more than a year, according to Sloan.

Standing next to a pile of trash including vacuums, a baby stroller, a car bumper and a road cone was James Cobern, a freshman political science major who is also part of Somma̢۪s class.

Cobern, who spent the majority of his morning hauling tractor tires from the river, said that the class is a good opportunity to accomplish something positive.

“Instead of books and tests, you’re actually getting out and doing something,â€Â Cobern said.

Somma said it takes the support of the entire community to put on events like this one.

Several local and chain businesses donated food, water, and equipment to the cause.

The large Dumpsters they used were paid for by a $3000 IRA grant from Fresno State̢۪s Associated Students, Inc.

Back at the main site, Hannah Frick, a senior political science major who is also part of Somma̢۪s class, surveyed the Dumpsters full of trash and tires. Her most interesting find of the day was a 5-foot-tall metal safe.

Frick also said that this class provided students with a unique opportunity.

“You get hands-on experience you wouldn’t get from sitting in a lecture,â€Â Frick said.