National River Cleanup Week Offers a Chance to Give Back to Rivers
When you stop to think of all the things rivers give us—from drinking water to wildlife habitat to stunning scenery to unforgettable paddling adventures—it’s surprising how often we take them for granted and how often their gifts are repaid with neglect or outright abuse. The National River Cleanup Week, May 14-22, offers us all a chance to show our appreciation and concern for our favorite rivers. Click here for an online registration form, news releases, tips on organizing a cleanup, photo and publicity contests and a trash tracking form, and to find the cleanup closest to you.
Paddlers Are Part of the Solution
Paddlers are rarely part of the problem when it comes to litter and pollution in and along our rivers. Because paddling affords a close-up view not available to the non-paddling public, kayakers, canoeists, and rafters have a uniquely personal perspective on the importance of rivers. We don’t want to share our eddies with floating trash, we don’t want to playboat in contaminated water, and we don’t want to see the trees lining the banks filled with discarded plastic bags and assorted junk. American Whitewater wants to hear about paddlers’ efforts toward cleaning up the streams we love, to document how many paddlers take part in cleanups and how many miles of stream they clean. If you or your paddling club participates in National River Cleanup Week, please take a few minutes to let us know about it by providing the following information:
- Your name
- River
- River reach
- Miles of river
- Class of river
- Preferred class of boating (1-5)
- State
- Email address
- Number of paddlers participating
- Affiliation (club, etc)
- Part of National Stream Clean Up Week?
- Date of Clean Up.
Email the information to Awcleanup@hotmail.com.
Good paddling, and thanks for being part of the solution.