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“Outstanding service. They were extremely careful delivering the extra large container into our driveway.” -- A. L. GARNER
Eden. The tiny village boasts a canopy of oak trees, a portion of the Little River frequented by manatees, and an official designation as a bird sanctuary. It'd be a fitting nickname, except for one thing: The rivers in Paradise probably weren't packed with floating islands of trash. In the part of the Little River that flows through El Portal, water bottles, takeout containers, and all manner of garbage drift through the water and get tangled in booms meant to block off powerful dams. And lately, the floating heap of refuse has been worse than ever, residents and the South Florida Water Management District agree."It's dumpsters and dumpsters and dumpsters full of trash," says resident Ian Hayes, whose home sits on the river.Frustrated community members have been making calls to village officials, and they're working with the Little River Conservancy to plan a meeting on the issue, though no date has been set. Randy Smith, a spokesperson for the water management district, says the area has long been a problem because people keep dumping trash into the river despite educational campaigns and the threat of fines. The problem has worsened lately because o... (ant Piles of Floating Trash Are Clogging Little River in El Portal)