A creek is no place for a Volkswagen

Colorado Springs' drains are clogged. And the problem is more than grease and toilet paper.

Overstuffed chairs, refrigerators and even a hot tub have found their final resting place in the city's 20 creeks and drainage channels.

The junk not only contaminates waterways, it also can get swept away during heavy rains, catch on bridges and cause flooding.

For years, the city occasionally plucked out the biggest items but didn't have staffing to clear debris on a regular basis.

But since the city started collecting Stormwater Enterprise fees last year from property owners based on impervious surface, crews have scoured channels almost monthly.

"Once the Stormwater Enterprise went into effect, we got right on it," said Mike Gigg, stormwater maintenance supervisor.

In one month starting April 2, crews collected six semitruck loads of refuse, including bicycles, tree limbs, playground equipment, a basketball hoop, yard debris, wood pallets, bales of straw, a mattress and 22 shopping carts, a portion of the 250 shopping carts dumped annually.

If the stores don't claim them, and they rarely do, they're crushed and recycled, city spokeswoman Carrie McCausland said.

Many tree limbs are turned into free mulch made available to the public or used in city parks. Tires are segregated for disposal as required by law, and the rest is taken to a landfill.

Gigg said some debris had languished in the channels for years because the city couldn't afford to clean it up.

"It's a catch-up game right now," he said.

In one day in April, a crew of 12 combed a channel on South Academy Boulevard and came up with 32 garbage bags of stuff.

Gigg said diapers and animal feces tossed into creeks, not to mention disintegrating garbage of other kinds, affects water quality in streams that serve as drinking water for downstream users.

The city could face fines for poor water quality in the creeks.

Last year during a spring storm, two city workers rescued a young girl playing in a rain-swollen ditch who had become caught on a shopping cart, McCausland said.

Gigg said the largest item found in a Springs creekbed was a Volkswagen several years ago.

"The only way we're going to change it is to educate people," Gigg said, noting more stormwater money could go toward flood-control projects if less is spent on cleaning creeks and tributaries.

McCausland said few people have been cited for illegal dumping, an offense that carries a penalty of 90 days in jail or a fine of up to $500.

But she urged anyone who sees illegal dumping in city creeks and channels to note the license plate number and call police at 444-7000.

Mostly, though, the city wants people to dispose of their trash and discarded items in a more responsible way, McCausland said.

"Everybody needs to do their part," she said.

CONTACT THE WRITER: 636-0238 or pam.zubeck@gazette.com