The Malden River Trash Trap turns four years old on November 18th. MyRWA, Friends of the Malden River, and our partners installed a trash trap across the northern end of the Malden River in 2021, replacing the trash boom that was piloted in 2019. The Trash Trap helps to catch and hold trash before it can float further down the Malden River and into the Mystic.
Previous Malden River Trash Boom. Credit: David Mussina
Current Malden River Trash Trap. Credit: David Mussina
Year-by-year breakdown of the amount of trash collected 2022-2025
Gentle Giant Rowing Club (GGRC) has been emptying the trap and monitoring what comes out of it with funding from the Mystic Valley Development Commission. Over the past four years, they have removed well over ONE TON of trash from the trap.
Background
Rich Whelan of Gentle Giant Rowing Club reported that the following items were most commonly found in the Trash Trap over the last 4 years.
The Mystic River watershed is one of the most urban watersheds in New England. Over 40% of our land area is made up of impervious surfaces like streets, sidewalks, and parking lots.
When it rains, water can't soak into the ground, so it quickly becomes runoff, which flushes all the accumulated litter—from intentionally dumped trash to materials that escape waste bins—directly into our rivers and streams. Wind can also blow trash into water bodies, or, less commonly, trash is dumped directly.
Malden River Trash Trap is MyRWA’s first on-the-water intervention project to prevent trash from getting into the Mystic River. It captures all kinds of trash, from single-use plastics to bottles, cans, and nips to styrofoam and paper products.
Learn more about our vision for a trash-free Mystic!
Key Lessons Learned
1. The Critical Need for Dedicated Funding
The first and most important lesson we have learned from working on this project is that maintenance funding is not optional — It’s essential. We are incredibly thankful to the Mystic Valley Development Commission for providing the crucial funds that keep this project viable. Likewise, the Friends of the Malden River and Gentle Giant Rowing Club ensure the trash trap is functioning and that no trash escapes into the Mystic River.
2. A Solution, Not a Cure
The trash trap is effective at interception, keeping tons of debris from being released into the Mystic River. However, every haul of plastic bottles, foams, and broken-down plastics serves as a stark reminder: we are only treating the symptom. While the Trash Trap prevents the trash from escaping into the Mystic River in the short term, the true fix requires tackling the issue at the source through better anti-littering campaigns, stricter rules for waste disposal, and installing infrastructure like Hydration Stations and closed public trash cans to prevent litter from being generated in the first place.
3. A Powerful Education Tool
The Malden River Trash Trap has been a great tool for public education. When Rich Whelan from GGRC heads out for maintenance, he provides a breakdown of all the trash collected, which allows us to identify the most common types of trash in our watershed. The trap also provides a powerful physical demonstration of the link between stormwater runoff and local trash issues, helping the community understand where the trash comes from.
Messages from Rich and Karen
1) What has been your experience maintaining the trash trap?
Karen Buck (Friends of the Malden River) - There’s definitely an art to maintaining the trash trap—and no one does it better than Rich Whelan. He’s out on the water nearly 75% of the year and knows how to read the river. He can predict the trap’s behavior depending on rainfall and wind. After a heavy rain, the trap quickly fills with debris, but strong winds can sometimes sweep the trash back out. The boom creates a sort of mini-gyre, which helps corral most of the floating debris. The trash ends up circulating just above the trap, making it easier to collect. It’s a delicate balance of water flow, weather, and timing—but when it works, it’s a beautiful thing.
Rich Whelan (Gentle Giant Rowing Club) - This experience has been educational. When you spend time picking up trash along the shorelines you see where the waste ends up. Where the trash comes from is what’s been learned. With almost every rainstorm, trash makes its way through the system and into the Malden River. The Trash Trap has prevented the waste from heading downriver which makes the river more welcoming to prospective users but does not address the issue of trash getting into the system. Another piece of education I received was how the water flows through the Trap and how that influences the flow of trash inside. The clearing of organic debris that gathers on the bottom of the trap does influence the way trash flows inside. Regular cleaning of that is needed.
2) Have you noticed any trends or changes in the type of trash over the last four years?
Karen - Absolutely. One major factor was the City of Malden joining Massachusetts’ SMART Recycling program. Through a grant, the city hired a supervisor (that’s me!) and a team of young adults to canvass neighborhoods, identify recycling violations, issue “tickets,” and pull bins back from the curb. In exchange, residents received covered recycling bins. Before that, our recycling contamination rate was somewhere around 65–75%. I don’t know the current numbers, but I do believe we made a difference. Covered bins helped a lot—they keep recyclables from blowing out into the streets and waterways. The city also stepped up street cleaning efforts, though I’m not sure if denser neighborhoods get extra attention. Still, between better bins and cleaner streets, we’re seeing less windblown trash overall. And as a side note—single-stream recycling still has its challenges. Many people just don’t understand what can and can’t go in those bins.
Rich - The trash appears “younger” than when we initially set up the trap and started cleaning. This means that the waste has not been in the system as long. The overall trend has not changed much. There are always random additions - sleeping bag, damaged canoe, plastic skull decoration, etc - but overall the type of trash has remained consistent.
3) What are the most common types of trash you see during a cleanup?
Karen - The usual suspects: bottle caps and cigarette butts. It’s mostly the small stuff people casually toss away without thinking. We used to see a ton of single-use plastic bottles, and while they’re still out there, there’s definitely been a reduction. I’m curious to hear what Rich thinks—but from my perspective, the little litter adds up fast.
Rich - Easily, the most common trash is single-use plastic bottles. The quantity has not changed but the type of bottles varies. Single-use liqueur bottles - “nips” - do seem to be becoming more common, however, single-use plastic water bottles are always present. Other items that we see regularly are pedicure foam toe separators, small pieces of foam (less than 3 inches in diameter), NERF foam darts, rubber gloves, medical masks, plastic straws, plastic cups and lids from fast food restaurants, various pieces of plastic, and more.
4) What does success look like for this project after four years?
Karen - Success means efficiency—figuring out how to clean out the trap faster and more effectively. I’ve floated a few ideas, like using fishing nets or some kind of liner to speed things up. We’re incredibly fortunate to have Rich on call to handle maintenance as needed. Some estimates suggested a once-a-month cleaning schedule, but that just wouldn’t work. The trash trap is unpredictable—it’s sensitive to rain, wind, and even, as we like to joke, “the Ghost of the Malden River,” which seems to interfere with any attempt at regular scheduling.
Rich - Success has been seen in the amount of trash removed from the river as well as the amount of trash that has not progressed down river. As a rower that has used the Malden River since 2006, the biggest indicator of success has been not rowing into plastics as often as we did previous to the trap being in position. Although there is still legacy trash along the shorelines and other waste that does make its way into the river via other discharge pipes, the quantity has been limited which makes for a better river user experience.
5) What has been your most challenging moment with the trash boom over the last four years?
Karen - The most frustrating part is that some trash still escapes. The smaller pieces can slip through the gaps and get stuck in areas adjacent to the trap, where they’re nearly impossible to retrieve. Hence, we added a second boom to make sure trash is not escaping. Another ongoing challenge is organic buildup. Leaves and other debris settle at the bottom and block the natural suction of the trap. That’s when Rich has to literally climb in and pitchfork the leaves out by hand. It’s tough, messy work—but it keeps the system running.
Rich - There are a couple that come to mind. In 2024, two of the cables that hold the Trap in place snapped due to what appears to be normal corrosion and it was a challenge to coordinate the repair. On a couple occasions, the lines securing the Trap in place were disconnected by parties unknown and not reconnected. (This could have been kids, folks in canoes/kayaks, or other parties attempting to head upriver.) Another challenge was discovering the way organics gather on the bottom of the trap and how that influences the flow of trash into the trap. During the Spring, getting into the trap is necessary to clear that debris.
