MOOP Mistress & Management

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I am TigerLily (Susan Drews Watkins) your Moop Mistress. I have been coming out to the Playa since 1998 with a few years off, so this might be number 15 or 16 times at BM. Over the years I have had a great variety of experiences in different camps and I have seen a lot of change. I have been management in a big theme camp, I worked DMV, I performed in the Great Circle- fire dancing prior to the burn for about 5 years, and I have worked GATE for the last few years. I joined OC9 last year, and I took on Moop Manager for the camp.

Moop (Matter out of Place) is a serious part of Burning Man culture. This is a Leave No Trace event. It is a huge undertaking in this amazing crazy city. Our main concern at OC9 is to leave our camp space perfect, as if there was no event. I am passionate about protecting our environment, participating fully in this amazing community, creating a safe, beautiful, caring, fun and amazing place for radical self-expression and, then, cleaning it all up at the end.


I am an artist, contemporary art jeweler, light worker and healer, Reiki Master/teacher, mom of Burners, grandmother, poi fire spinner, dancer, traveler, gardener, reader, daydreamer, and enthusiastic participant on this planet…



There she is, Our Moop Mistress Extroidinaire!! and this is what she has to say about MOOPing:





MOOP awareness for camping in OC9 2017:

“You are expected to collaborate, be inclusive, creative, connective and clean up after yourself. Participate actively as a citizen of Black Rock City.” BM ORG

We are so fortunate to have support with our trash and recycling by DPW, so it is important to do our part correctly.

Even though we get so much support with electricity, water, trash and recycling and porta-potties we are still responsible for our own RADICAL SELF RELIANCE. 

For all camp members:

TENTS and SHADE STRUCTURES- secure all parts of tents and shade structures to the Playa properly with large rebar, or earth anchors and use heavy straps or rope to tie it all down – Tents and Shade Structures can become MOOP. Ask me about hanging on to a shade structure that was lifting 2 feet off the ground, which was held by 18” rebar and ratchet straps.

TABLES and CHAIRS- Weight tables down, and lay folding chairs down flat on the ground when you leave camp.

TARPS and RUGS- Make sure tarps are not tattered, and only rugs with bound edges can be used. NO used carpet with unsewn edges, and NO astroturf.

SMALL ITEMS, DECORATIONS AND PERSONAL ITEMS- Put everything away when you leave camp. If you decorate your area or your vehicle, make sure the décor is sturdy and secure it carefully. Put away cups, plates, papers, light fabrics, napkins etc.

 RVs and Vehicles- Protect the Playa from any fluids that might drip on the ground. Put down a pan or two layers of thick cardboard to protect the Playa, underneath the vehicle and weight it so it doesn’t blow away (I use a 2.5 gallon water). NOT EVEN WATER can leak on to the Playa.

Trash and Recycling

We will have bins in our common area for camp trash and recycling (from our meals and our bar). NO PERSONAL TRASH/RECYCLING.

Trash only in the trash bin. Recycle- Plastics, Glass (no lids or caps), Aluminum Cans –CRUSH them (not dirty kitchen aluminum), Steel in their marked bins. The Moop Team will sort and dispose of these items, so please do your part by handling it correctly when you put items in their bin.
NO BATTERIES OR OTHER HAZARDOUS WASTE IN ANY BINS!!!
PERSONAL TRASH/RECYCLING- Remember radical self reliance J

Pack and take home all of your camp area trash and recycling. You can take aluminum to RECYCLING CAMP. I highly encourage using Contractor Grade Trash bags from Home Depot or Costco. And, for smaller bags use Trash Compactor bags from Costco. They are heavy duty plastic and both hold up much better than regular plastic bags.

PERSONAL CAMP AREA-

Please clean up any Moop that blows into your area, or gets left behind by visitors. Do not let items blow into other camps.

WE WILL HAVE A LOST AND FOUND BOX IN THE MAIN AREA FOR GOOD MOOP ITEMS THAT SHOW UP IN CAMP AND ARE NOT CLAIMED. At the end, it will turn into a FREE BOX.

VIRGINS TO BURNING MAN AND TO OC9-

 There is a lot to learn about to prepare for the Playa. Please read the Survival Guide
 https://survival.burningman.org/

and, read the Leave No Trace section.
https://burningman.org/event/preparation/leaving-no-trace/

Some important points-
Remove all extra outer packaging of purchased items, ie- plastic wrapping, outer boxes, papers etc.
Clothing should be Moop Free- No fur that sheds easily, no sequins or beads that fall off, no feathers that aren’t glued down tightly NO GLITTER!!!
Secure bike decorations very well and use very durable materials that won’t come off easily. Glue fake flowers together, no mylar streamers that can tear, no toys or bike fixtures that aren’t secured well.

I promise that I don’t always say NO. I am happy to advise so shoot me questions. J susandrewswatkins@gmail.com  “TigerLily”
FROME THE BURNINGMAN.COM WEBSITE:  READ PLEASE
The Most Common Impact Trace and MOOP Issues
  1. Rebar, Tent Stakes and Ground Anchors
    There’s nothing that a pair of vice grips and some leverage can’t pull out. And anything hammered into the ground will just get squeezed out of the playa another day, after a series of freezes and thaws.
  2. Abandoned Art, Abandoned Camps, Abandoned Stuff
    Get your stuff off the playa!
  3. Grey Water/Black Water Dumping
    Dumping your grey/black water on the ground is nasty for the environment, and can get you a hefty fine from the BLM.
  4. Dunes
    Why do dunes matter? We share this land with others who use it, and it’s important that we keep it safe for vehicle passage by keeping the playa flat (The Black Rock Desert is known to be one of the flattest stretches of land on Earth). Dunes are formed when windblown dust bounces off stationary objects and reforms on the ground, attracting more and more dust to the pile and exponentially creating a bigger dune. A mere pencil can create a dune. Once they start, there is nothing to stop them, except us. Caught at an early stage, dunes can be stopped by simply raking them down with a landscape rake. Be sure to MOOP the area afterward.
  5. Fireworks Debris
    Fireworks are not allowed in Black Rock City; unfortunately, some folks do sneak them in, and more unfortunately, the people who light them off are rarely the same people that clean up after them.
  6. Carpet Fiber/Debris
    Carpets, rugs, and old tattered tarps are often shredded to bits, leaving behind micro-sized MOOP over large areas. NO ASTRO TURF!
  7. Cloth, Fiber and Rope Debris
    Torn fragments of clothes, costumes, jewelry, and other fibrous materials.
  8. Metal Debris
    Nails, screws, fasteners, metal slag, beer bottle tops, etc. There is hardly anything on the playa that isn’t fastened with metal. Whether your constructing something out of wood or welding, a magnet sweeper with a release handle (do a web search) will work wonders getting metal quickly and easily off the ground.
  9. Cigarette Butts
    Do not drop cigarettes on the Black Rock Desert. It’s not your ashtray.
  10. Glass Debris
    Broken beer bottles, broken windshields, etc.
  11. Plastic Debris
    Plastic bottle tops, packaging, baggies, zip ties, duct tape, caution tape, etc. Plastic is all too often airborne MOOP due to wind conditions and carelessness. Manage your plastic materials, keep them secure and recycle. Hint: Cut off the top of a 1 gallon jug of water and you have an excellent MOOP bucket.
  12. Wood Debris
    Wood chips, bark, palettes, splinters, sawdust, boxes, cardboard, paper, etc. Though often thought to be “organic,” wood is simply not found naturally the playa, and it is here where we must draw the line — it’s MOOP. The impact of wood is consistently the highest of all the traces and must be eliminated. We simply ask you to manage your wood. Place a tarp on the ground for your work zones, woodpiles, and burnable debris.
  13. 13. Plants
    Plants, palm trees, pine needles, palm fronds, leaves, etc. Trees, plants, and leaves die, break, and shred, creating a huge mess of micro-sized MOOP spread out over a wide area. Factor in the dust storms and you’ve got a disaster to deal with on your hands and knees.

Playa Restoration Tools of the Trade
There is an art to leaving no trace and we lead no trace by example. Here is a list of tools that can restore any impact condition back to its natural beauty:
  1. Magnet Sweepers (aka magnet rakes)
    If you’re working with metal on playa, you should make your life easier by using a magnet sweeper! All you have to do is roll them over your work area, listen as the magnet pulls the loose metal off of the playa, and then discard the metal in the trash using the clever release lever. Simple and inexpensive.
  2. Rakes
    or better yet, landscape rakes! Dust storms happen, dunes build up very quickly and you could find yourself on your hands and knees using your bare hands sifting for things that might well turn into MOOP. Use a rake, and pull the MOOP out. Landscape rakes are wider, can catch more MOOP, and can comb through more area. You can use the back end of the rake to cut down the size of the dune and pull it flat.
  3. Push Brooms
    That dune that you’re standing on that used to be the site of your camp… yeah, that can’t be there. The dune will just get bigger and bigger as it attracts more dust and catches MOOP. When the winter rains come, that dune will just solidify into a big dune as hard as the playa surface itself which will suck for anyone using the playa, including us. Do your best and knock it down with a pushbroom. Or have a few on hand and watch how easy it is to restore the flattest real estate in the Black Rock Desert.
  4. Shovels
    Got a disaster, need to fill a hole, or flatten a dune? Use a shovel. Leave No Trace.
  5. Vise Grips
    Okay, so you were a little excessive with the rebar and now you can’t get it out of the ground. Get some vise grips around that sucker. Give it a couple of rotations to loosen up the dirt around the rebar and then… TWIST back and forth vigorously while pulling upward (lift with the legs, Hercules, not your back). The dirt will act as bearings, working that rebar free of the playa.
  6. Screen or Strainers
    These are great if there is a lot of small stuff in one area like a bead spill from a broken necklace or small hardware parts. Scoop playa with small items and sift with the screen or strainer.
We have all of these items in our MOOP CLEAN UP TOOL area.

FINAL DAYS ON PLAYA SUNDAY THROUGH TUESDAY:
We all love to roll in when we arrive, set up our little homes for the duration and have a good time. Then, we rush to get home back to work or whatever… If you can stay to help Moop on Monday or Tuesday, your will get a cool STAR!!
Everyone must do a very thorough Moop Cleanup of your camping area-
1. Pick up all Moop – tiny beads, strands of string to bikes, clothes etc.
2. Rake your campground and look for more Moop. Also, we are trying to make flat and smooth the Playa. If you are in an RV, final step, pull out into the street and go back to rake your tire tracks and ruts. (Last year there were a lot of RV tracks that only about 2-3 of us raked up. We know where you all camp so we know who doesn’t do the final raking etc.
Final rake is with the Magnetic Rake. It is very cool and rather fun. It is amazing to see how much metal comes up with it. It is easy to use, and lessons are free!!
3. IF, you want to dispose of CLEAN water only, you can use a pan to spray it out on to the streets of the Playa (like a water truck). Cooler water is okay as long as it is clean – no food, or packaging debris.
There is much more to know but this is all for now. Please read, do your part, and learn as much as you can about protecting our earth, Playa and event. J
PLEASE MOOP EXTRA DURING THE WEEK OR WHEN YOU LEAVE.
GO OUT ON TO THE PLAYA OR OUR STREETS AND DO SOME EXTRA CLEAN UP , ESPECIALLY DEEP PLAYA.

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1 comments

  1. danielJuly 17, 2017 at 10:30 PM

    well written, super effort. great job, good on you.

    ReplyDelete