When you play outdoors, it’s essential to take care of and work to protect your favorite spaces. At least that’s what we believe here at Wend, because if you don’t work to ensure that natural places aren’t here for future generations, we all lose out.
But sometimes working to protect the environment can seem like a daunting responsibility, which is why we like to support groups that make it a more manageable task, of which We Love Clean Rivers is a great example. Built upon the mission of “turning restoration into recreation,” We Love Clean Rivers focuses the energies of the local Portland boating community to cleaning up a large section of the Clackamas River every September. Working with local groups and companies, the Down the River Cleanup that is sponsored by We Love Clean Rivers may only be a one day cleanup, but its effects are felt much longer. Not only are local communities encouraged to keep local rivers clean on an everyday basis, this year We Love Clean Rivers is also teaming up with RIPPLE Effect to host an art show in October featuring pieces made from the over 3 tons of river debris collected during the cleanup.
So what exactly do you find during a river cleanup? There are your usual cigarette butts that litter the river banks, and the ever popular beer cans, but during yesterday’s cleanup I was amazed to see all the bigger stuff that finds its way floating down the water and buried in river grass: tires, camper tops, sign posts, metal siding from houses, etc. Spending a day with a group of over 350 cleanup volunteers ensures that those bigger pieces of trash make their way out of natural recreational areas and into trash bins.
To learn more check out www.welovecleanrivers.org.
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