It’s spring cleaning time at Deal Lake.
The Friends of Deal Lake will hold an annual cleanup on Saturday, March 31. Since the early 1980s, the group has advocated for government assistance to clean the waterway and promoted awareness of how the public’s actions can impact the lake’s environment.
The five fingers of Deal Lake were once a center of recreation and tourism in the Greater Asbury Park area. But decades of development — and the runoff and siltation that came with it — nearly destroyed the waterway.
“We typically have anywhere between 15 to 45 volunteers that assist” with the annual cleanup, said Friends of Deal Lake President Jerry Maurer. “The goal is to collect debris that folks can safely access — mostly floatable-type stuff like cans, bottles, Styrofoam products.
“We get trash bags donated from the municipalities — typically Asbury Park and Ocean Township — who are very eager to assist and usually pick up the trash the following day,” Maurer said.
The areas where debris is collected are normally the Asbury Park boat ramp area, the Interlaken and railroad tracks intersection areas and the flume areas, depending on how many participants the event draws, he said.
The volunteers are mostly members of the Friends of Deal Lake, according to Maurer, “or folks that just want to help improve the area. We also usually have Boy Scouts, students from Monmouth University and members of the Asbury Park Fishing Club.”
Volunteers are asked to gather at 9 am on Saturday at the Asbury Park boat ramp, which is located just west of Main Street on Seventh Avenue. Visit www.friendsofdeallake.com for more information on the organization.
