Anything that floats can be found in the Missouri River, whether the items come from St. Joseph or upstream in Bismarck, N.D.

About 275 volunteers gave up their Saturday morning to discard of nearly 5 tons of items that pollute a 12-mile stretch of river that lines St. Joseph.

“There’s no government agency, there’s no corporation that gets out and cleans our rivers and streams,� said Steve Schnarr, lower reach project manager for Missouri River Relief, the nonprofit organization that sponsored the cleanup. “The only way it’s ever going to get done, if we think our streams and rivers are valuable, is to go out and do it.�

Volunteers were taken by boat to stretches along the river that needed cleanup. One of the major hot spots is under the Interstate 229 bridge, Mr. Schnarr said.

Volunteers also scoured roadways along the river, the river walk and around the Remington Nature Center.

The cleanup was originally scheduled for June, but record floods prevented the organization from sending boats downstream.

“It’d been such a high-water year, we realized we needed to reschedule well into the future and give the river a chance to calm down,� Mr. Schnarr said.

Volunteers ranged from Boy Scout troops to church groups and local residents interested in volunteering.

Becky Alvarez, den leader for the Tiger Cubs of St. Francis, had four of her Cubs help with the cleanup. She decided to make this a troop activity to teach the boys to think twice about where they’re placing their trash. She also gave them a lesson in recycling.

“I think it’s great,� Ms. Alvarez said. “It’s sad to see some of the things on shore, and that people wouldn’t be more concerned about their trash.�

The Cubs found plastic bottles, diapers, beer cans, a baby mitten and what appeared to be a giant railroad tie.

Mr. Schnarr said volunteers typically find items such as tires, plastic of any kind, children’s toys and even refrigerators and swing sets.

“You will find anything on the river,� he said. “It’s like a cross-section of human life out there: Everything ends up in the river.�

Missouri River Relief organizes river cleanups from Yankton, S.D., to St. Louis. For future cleanup events, visit www.riverrelief.org.

“It’s nobody’s responsibility but ours,� Mr. Schnarr said. “If we care for it, then we have to take care of it.�

Kim Norvell can be reached at kim.norvell@newspressnow.com.