|
Thank you to the wonderful volunteers who participated in the 2013 Extreme Cleanup.
Click here to see the 2013 Extreme Cleanup locations.
Most cleanups were on Saturday, April 6, but some will take place later in April. If you would like to participate, click on the green pins.
Each spring, we organize and promote the Rock Creek Extreme Cleanup, with trash cleanups at over 50 locations along the 33-mile length of Rock Creek. Our goal is total stream cleanup of Rock Creek and its tributaries, the parks connected to Rock Creek, and the neighborhoods near Rock Creek where trash originates. We work closely with the National Park Service and Montgomery County Parks.
The Extreme Cleanup is part of the Alice Ferguson Foundation’s annual Potomac River Watershed Cleanup, which occurs in four states and the District of Columbia in April. We do our part for a trash-free Potomac River by cleaning up Rock Creek, which flows into the Potomac near the Watergate Complex and the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC.
In the past four years, volunteers have collected a combined total of nearly 9,500 bags of litter, 60 tons of junk, 675 tires, and over 27,500 plastic bags. As a result of these efforts, many locations are much cleaner than before.
But trash still accumulates through littering and illegal dumping of large items, such as furniture and construction waste. When it rains, litter—mostly plastic bags and bottles—from the street gutters in surrounding neighborhoods wash into the storm sewer system that drains straight to the nearest creek.
What You Can Do Now
- Can't find a site near you? Adopt your local section of Rock Creek Park through our Stream Team Program
- Pick up any trash you see in or near street gutters and in the parks throughout the year.
- Don’t create trash--use refillable stainless steel containers instead of bottled water.
- Let us know if you would like to lead a group cleanup in your neighborhood or a park near you.
|
