SHASTA LAKE, Calif. — It was a messy Memorial Day weekend on a California lake and some University of Oregon students are partially to blame, according to officials.
The U.S. Forest Service told KGW they always expect large crowds in May, and say every Mother's Day and Memorial Day Weekend bring lots of college students to Shasta Lake.
"They all rent individual houseboats and they gather at Slaughterhouse Island," said Deborah Carlisi, a detailed recreation staff officer for Shasta Lake District and National Recreation Area. "This Memorial Weekend we had about 3,000 kids show up. And you know, they came and we really didn’t have any problems, except for the trash that they left behind."
She said it took a crew of three people about six hours to pick up all the litter.
"Unfortunately, there are articles — plastic wrappers, cups, bottles, cans, those types of things — that you see were down in the water. That’s not creating a very good habitat for our fish wildlife, when that kind of stuff is left," she said.
Carlisi said they'll be unable to clean up some of the garbage until the lake levels drop.
"We have a pack it in, pack it out policy that we ask everyone to use, because that way the people coming behind them can enjoy without seeing a bunch of trash," Carlisi said.
The University of Oregon issued a statement about the students who visited the lake over the weekend. The university thanked the U.S. Forest Service for contacting them, and apologized for the garbage in and around the lake.
"The garbage left behind does not represent the values of our institution. We are sorry for the impact to the island and extra work for the Forest Service," the statement said, in part.
"We are investigating this event and working with the US Forest Service and our students to remediate the damage and hopefully prevent similar actions in the future. This is not a university sanctioned or sponsored event but is attended by university students, many of whom are members of university-recognized fraternities and sororities."