Group chops weeds by hand to keep herbicides out of Codorus Creek in York City

Through intense sun and humid evenings, Ted Evgeniadis is chopping weeds every week at the Codorus Creek.

It’s a laborious effort to maintain a decadelong agreement between the Lower Susquehanna Riverkeeper Association and the Army Corps of Engineers that prevents the spraying of herbicides to kill weeds along the river. 

“We trim and chop the vegetation to alleviate and to stop the Army Corps of Engineers from spraying herbicides, which are harmful to the environment, harmful for water quality and aquatic species,” Evgeniadis, the executive director for the Lower Susquehanna Riverkeeper Association, said. “So rather than spraying, we chop.” 

But why remove the weeds at all?

The Army Corps of Engineers is required to maintain a clear line of sight and to inspect the flood control walls and riprap, which is rock and other materials placed to protect structures on the shoreline, throughout York City.

If it were up to Evgeniadis, he wouldn’t chop the weeds at all. But between pesticides or manual chopping, he will choose chopping every time.

"Before we started the program, this place was trashed. When it's sprayed, it's barren," Evgeniadis said. "There's no vegetation. It's just rough. When you see a waterway, you want to see green vegetation. So this is really important for us because this is a really awesome program that keeps harmful chemicals away from our creek."

Evgeniadis invites the public to join him every week for this initiative. And while some days a couple of volunteers will come out, on July 24 it was just Evgeniadis and LSRA program coordinator Aaron Dixon.

The lack of volunteers doesn’t get Evgeniadis down, though.

Some weeks are just better than others. For example, on Monday, a small group of volunteers came out to help with the initiative.

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“Fortunately for us, we've gotten some some great local support from the York County Community Foundation this year and last year to hire some contractors to help us out,” Evgeniadis said. “But having crews out here, anywhere from four to 10 people, gets a lot of work done.”

The LSRA crew uses a variety of hand tools, including hand scythes, weed whips and battery-operated chainsaws. Any volunteer who comes out will be provided any and all necessary tools for the program.

The Greener Codorus Initiative happens from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. on Mondays and from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays. Individuals can meet Evgeniadis at the Foundry Plaza Codorus Boat Basin, 226 W. Philadelphia St.

Since launching this program, Evgeniadis has noticed additional positive side effects aside from keeping pesticides out of the waterway.

When care is taken to improve the local environment, people take notice.

"With us doing this over the last 10 years, I've seen less trash," Evgeniadis said. "So, I don't see as much trash as I used to see."