Reporting trip: North Oconee River Greenway
ATHENS, GA — As part of my reporting on keeping Athens-Clarke County’s waterways clean and sustainable, I visited the North Oconee River Greenway to find out more about the cleanliness of one of the county’s main waterways. I came to the decision to learn more about the North Oconee River after an interview with Laurel Loftin, who informed me on the importance of this river and its impact on the county. The North Oconee River joins with the Middle Oconee River in Athens to form the Oconee River, which the city of Athens is the largest of the water from the river for municipal and industrial uses, according to the Georgia River Network. The city of Athens also created the North Oconee River Greenway to provide recreational uses to the citizens of Athens-Clarke County. Such uses include an eight mile concrete path and 5.1 miles of hiking trails. According to the Athens-Clarke County Unified Government website, there are several trails along the river for the use of the public.
Despite the promotion of recreational and industrial uses, the North Oconee River is home to plenty of trash, litter and crime. According to The Red&Black, a decomposing body was found in the river in the beginning of August 2020 after an accidental drowning. Due to the high levels of contaminants in the North Oconee River, there should be an increased awareness of its problems to prevent any further accidents and cleanier drinking water.
