OSAGE BEACH, Mo. – During last week’s Bass Pro Tour Stage Four competition at Lake of the Ozarks, the Major League Fishing Fisheries Management Division in partnership with Berkley Labs completed the first FMD Costa Clean Water Matters program event.

Bass Pro Tour anglers Casey Ashley, Gary Klein and Kevin VanDam were joined by University of Missouri college anglers and local high school students to complete 4 miles of shoreline cleanup. This group focused on areas around the PB2 and Pa He Tsi boat launch ramps, including hiking trails, parking lots, camping and public fishing areas.

SeaArk boats supports the Costa Clean Water Program by deploying their Lake Clean Up Boat at the projects. This boat provides the ability to capture solid floating debris from the waterbody that can’t be reached from the shoreline. Two of the college anglers jumped on the SeaArk boat to collect trash found floating in the coves around the shoreline.

Over four hours of work, the crews’ combined efforts on the shoreline and by water allowed the volunteers to collect 14 bags of trash, a water-logged boat dock float and two boat trailers worth of bunk boards. VanDam may have even found a lucky charm in a horseshoe on the beach.

“Lake of the Ozarks is one of the cleanest waterbodies we visit, but we can all be better stewards of the environment,” said MLF co-founder Gary Klein. “This project let us anglers give back to this community and plant the seeds of stewardship with the next generation.”

The next FMD Costa Clean Water Matters Program supported by SeaArk will take place at the Tackle Warehouse Pro Circuit Stop 5 at the James River on June 15.