Lake LBJ sandbar cleanup June 21

Since forming after the October 2018 flood, the Lake LBJ sandbar has become popular with boaters and swimmers. However, debris and vegetation are taking over the “island,” located east of the RM 2900 bridge in Kingsland.

Resident Jordan Martin organized a sandbar cleanup from 8 a.m. to noon Monday, June 21, so people can once again fully enjoy the spot. Volunteers are needed, and they should just show up with rakes, trash bags, and tarps.

“I’m bringing out my 25-foot shell boat,” Martin said, “but that boat won’t handle all the wood, lumber, brush, and trash. We need more boats and more manpower.”

Martin bought property in the Kingsland area in February 2020. He and his family have enjoyed the sandbar, an island created by rushing floodwaters in 2018. 

“It was clean, and there wasn’t a lot of trash on it,” he said. “Over the course of 2020, trash started accumulating. The grass grew bigger and bigger. It’s not ideal grass, it’s thorny, there’s some weeds in there. It’s not attractive.”

He contacted the Lower Colorado River Authority, which reached out to the Texas General Land Office and discovered the sandbar isn’t owned by any entity and no one is assigned to manage or clean it.

So Martin decided to take matters into his own hands. He said the event will serve as a way for him to give back to the community and teach his children the value of volunteering.

And with Fourth of July only a few weeks away, a cleaner sandbar will make for a better holiday experience.

“Let’s go (trim) the dead grass and rake it up in a reasonable amount of time,” he said. “The more people who come out, the less work we have to do. That would be great.”

jfierro@thepicayune.com