Skip to content

Okanagan Forest Task Force cleans up scrap yard, creates safe space for wildlife

The task force removed 37,411 pounds of garbage from an area off Postill Lake Road
21887549_web1_200625-KCN-Okanagan-Task-Force-Cleanup-KEYWssORD_1
A moose freely walks across an area on Pospill Road in Kelowna after a hefty cleanup by the Okanagan Task Force on May 9, 2020. (Photo - Nathan Harmel)

The Okanagan Forest Task Force (OFTF) has turned a scrap yard into an area for wildlife to enjoy safely.

After a year of cars and junk rotting out at a site off Postill Lake Road in Kelowna, OFTF crews came together to clean up the area that is often traversed by wildlife.

READ MORE: Crowd on beach forces moose to swim across Okanagan Lake

On May 9, the cleanup crew removed 29,100 pounds of scrap metal and 8,311 pounds of illegally dumped garbage for a total of 37,411 pounds, making it one of the largest cleanups in OFTF history, according to Kane Blake, founder of the non-profit.

“Many of the vehicles had been there for a year or more, slowly getting destroyed,” said Blake.

“The people doing this couldn’t care less about the environment or the effects that it could have. It is so amazing to see wildlife back in that area and it so clean for them. Without the amazing volunteers, this wouldn’t have been made possible.”

Due to volunteers cleaning the area, wildlife is no longer walking through garbage and burnt vehicles to get to drinking water.

The Okanagan Forest Task Force has been working on bringing awareness to illegal dumping and the impacts it has on wildlife and forests. Since September of 2016, OFTF has removed over 23,000 pounds of illegally dumped garbage and metal.

READ MORE: Leading Westbank First Nation into the future


Daniel Taylor
Reporter, Kelowna Capital News
Follow me on Twitter