Twin Lakes Preserve to Get a Cleanup

One local Wantagh landmark is about to get a community led cleanup.

This weekend, residents from Wantagh and Seaford are expected to attend a volunteer led cleanup of Wantagh’s Twin Lakes Preserve, an area that has recently developed a pollution problem.

Lifelong Wantagh resident Chris Illss organized the cleanup, which is scheduled for this Sunday.  Illss says that he was inspired to organize the cleanup after a recent walk with a friend, where he noticed just how polluted the preserve has become.  He cites the growing piles of trash along the trails leading to , as well as the trash in the lakes as the motivation behind organizing the cleanup.

“It was pretty overwhelming to see something as beautiful as the lakes are become trashed like that,” he said.  “We were out there expecting to take a nice walk, and all we saw was the mess out there. We grew up in Wantagh, and it has never been as bad as it is now.”

This Sunday’s cleanup started out as just an idea, and Illss says that the support has already been overwhelming.

“This whole thing started out as just an idea, and we’ve already gotten a lot of local support,” he said.  “People have already told me they’ll be there volunteering and are offering to bring tools and food.”

The cleanup will begin at 10 a.m., and will continue until sunset.  Illss says that he plans to hold a similar cleanup for Mill Pond in Bellmore. He says that everyone is welcome to attend the cleanup to help out, and is hopeful that the event will raise awareness to a problem that is affecting not just Wantagh, but all of Lonhg Island.

“It seems like this is all over Long Island,” he said.  “The trash and everything...it’s really just unfortunate to see how so much trash can really destroy such a beautiful area.”