'Gitter' done in south MS waterways

Mississippi State University’s Coastal Marine Extension Program is overseeing a trash scoop of four Coastal waterways as part of a pilot project to improve water quality. Last week, the project deployed ‘Litter Gitter’s in the southern branch of Magnolia Bayou in Hancock County; Brickyard Bayou and Canal #1 in Harrison County; and on Bayou Chico in Jackson County. Litter Gitter(s) were developed by Osprey Initiative of Mobile, Ala. It uses booms to direct the flow of water and litter into an aluminum cage that’s cleaned twice a month. Both marine vessels and wildlife can navigate over or under the devices. Litter Gitter(s) do a “really good job of trapping floating litter” during heavy rains or when tides go in and out, Eric Sparks, director of MSU’s coastal program, says in a YouTube video. Litter has a major impact on water quality - from being unsightly to harming the environment, especially when it breaks down into microplastics that are integrated into the food chain and consumed by fish and aquatic life. Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality provided MSU with $162,150 from BP restoration funds for the pilot project. Litter Gitter(s) have been effective in Keegan Bayou and Bayou Auguste in Biloxi over the summer. (Source: Sun Herald 12/19/21/ New devices trap water pollution in Bay St. Louis, Gulfport | Biloxi Sun Herald