BOWMAN, N.D. -- The cleanup of Highway 85 from Bowman to Williston generated 1,800 bags of litter filled by hundreds of volunteers and taken to area landfills.
The cleanup was delayed by spring rain, but when the skies cleared last week, volunteers went out in force, said project coordinator Cal Klewin, director of the Theodore Roosevelt Expressway Association. The association is rebranding the Highway 85 corridor in the Great Plains.
The State Department of Transportation district workers picked up the filled bags and kept track of the number filled within each highway district area. The totals along the 169-mile stretch of highway were Belfield, 420; Williston, 340; Watford City, 920; and Bowman, 120.
The volunteers represented Williston, Bowman, Bowman County, Belfield, Watford City, North Dakota Petroleum Council, North Dakota League of Cities, Vision West, North Dakota Motor Carriers, North Dakota Association of General Contractors, Theodore Roosevelt Medora Foundation, North Dakota Association of Oil and Gas Producing Counties, North Dakota Tourism Department, McKenzie County Tourism and Western Dakota Lions Clubs.
DOT’s district engineer Larry Gangl said the oil patch highway needed some special attention because of the large traffic volume and the amount of debris that blows off trucks.
