The Great Sierra River Cleanup

 The Sierra Nevada Region is a world-renowned destination for adventure and discovery. Recreational gems like Yosemite, Lake Tahoe, and Mammoth Mountain draw visitors from around the world. Unfortunately, we don’t always pack out what we pack in.

Sierra Nevada rivers, lakes, and streams are the source of drinking water for 23 million Californians. These waterways provide for activities as wild as river rafting or as relaxed as resting near a babbling stream. This year, the Sierra Nevada Conservancy and dozens of local groups throughout the Sierra are asking for your help to keep these waterways clean.

Join us on Saturday, September 20, for the 6th annual Great Sierra River Cleanup and help keep your favorite Sierra spot trash-free. Thousands of volunteers will join together to remove items like tires, cigarette butts, appliances, baby diapers, and cans and bottles galore. And what you find this year could be even more interesting than ever before.

As we face drought conditions for the third year in a row, water levels are lower than ever. Volunteers will be granted a rare and possibly surprising look into the trash that has previously been submerged below the surface of our waterways. So bring your little explorers, your treasure hunters, and your adventurers, and make a discovery of your own!

There is a job for everyone—whether you want to work at the registration table, pick up litter along the waterline, snorkel for underwater trash, wrestle with larger items, or help out loading a dumpster.

Over the last five years, more than 19,000 volunteers have collectively removed nearly 600 tons of trash from the rivers, lakes, and streams of the Sierra Nevada. While the primary goal is to collect trash, the event also serves as an opportunity to promote stewardship of the waterways that provide more than 60 percent of California’s developed water supply.

To find a cleanup, visit the Sierra Nevada Conservancy’s web site at www.sierranevada.ca.gov and check out our cleanup map on the Great Sierra River Cleanup page. Pick an area, register with the coordinating group, and head out on September 20 to help us clean up our streams, rivers, and lakes. Also, visit our Facebook page for pictures, information, updates, and more. We’ll see you on the river!

When: Saturday, September 20, 2014, from 9 AM to noon

Where: Pick your favorite cleanup site and register in advance—visit www.sierranevada.ca.gov and go the Great Sierra River Cleanup page for more info.

What to bring: Closed-toed shoes, appropriate clothing, hat, sunscreen, water, gloves, and a bucket or reusable bag