Cooperative Extension and Wyandotte Nation Collaborate on Tire Cleanup

The Wyandotte Nation hosted a free tire drive on April 24, allowing 42 tires to be removed from a future urban farm in Joplin, MO.

Lincoln University Cooperative Extension (LUCE) worked with the Wyandotte Nation to remove tires from a blighted property last month.

The Wyandotte Nation is a Native American tribe headquartered in Wyandotte, Oklahoma. The tribe runs several environmental programs, including tire collections through its Lost Creek Recycling Center.

The property, owned by Wild Creek Turkey Farms and located in Joplin, originally housed the Joplin Brick Company and is one of the biggest privately held parcels in the city.

The unused land fell into disrepair and has since been used as a dumping ground — accumulating approximately 40 tons of trash, including 17 cars and hundreds of tires.

Jack Spurlin, an outreach specialist with LUCE’s Innovative Small Farmers’ Outreach Program (ISFOP), said he started the cleanup effort around 5 years ago.

He said the property runs along a stream, so the garbage posed a significant environmental risk.

“Having a localized problem is one thing but taking it downstream is a whole other deal,” Spurlin said. “It became my personal mission to help out.”

Spurlin began working with the community to clean the property with the goal of turning it into an urban farm. The 20-acre property will grow elderberries, blackberries and garden crops.

Through community cleanup events, tons of trash were removed, including 700 tires.

Innovative Small Farmers’ Outreach Program specialist Jack Spurlin worked with community members for 5 years to remove hundreds of tires from a blighted property in Joplin.

Spurlin said the challenge of getting rid of tires isn’t removing them but disposing of them, as it’s often expensive. Fortunately, the property is located within driving distance of Oklahoma, putting the Wyandotte Nation in a position to help.

The Wyandotte Nation hosted a free tire drive on April 24, allowing the last 42 tires to be removed from the future farm.

“We’ll take any help we can get, and this was a unique opportunity,” Spurlin said. “It was a great cooperative deal.”

With the tires gone, Spurlin and community partners can begin working toward transforming the blighted property into a proper urban farm.

Spurlin said ISFOP, Wild Turkey Creek Farms, the City of Joplin and other entities are partnering to improve and develop the property. In addition to becoming an urban farm, he said the property will also act as a community event center.

And, the property will be protected so it never falls into disrepair again.

For more information on ISFOP specialists and programming, visit https://www.lincolnu.edu/cooperative-extension-and-research/cooperative-extension/plant-science/innovative-small-farmers-outreach-program.html.