John Brown@@CANNOT VERIFY@@, 61, is passionate about keeping local waterways clean and pristine — and he’s not the only one.
Brown, a Eugene resident, was one of about 200 blue-shirted volunteers who took part in the second-annual Great Willamette Cleanup @@http://www.willamette-riverkeeper.org/WRK/index.html@@via land or boat. The event took place from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Sunday at three locations in Eugene and Springfield: Alton Baker Park, Island Park and the Greenway Bike Bridge near the Valley River Center. The regional cleanup was part of a 187-mile effort spanning through the entire Willamette Valley.@@ce@@
The effort was nothing new to Brown, who has been combing the banks of the Willamette River for 25 years in search of garbage.
“There just gets to be too much garbage not to clean around the river frequently,” Brown said.
“The river isn’t a place to be dumping garbage,” said Michelle Emmons@@http://www.registerguard.com/web/newslocalnews/26992670-41/river-willamette-clean-eugene-park.html.csp@@, regional outreach manager for REI. “When I think about how much garbage is in there, it freaks me out.”
Marissa Williams@@CE@@, a first-year master’s student at the University, was another participant in the cleanup. Williams was sympathetic to those who want to sleep in on their weekends, but she said the personal reward was worth a few hours of missed sleep.
“After you take that first step to getting up and coming out, it gets easier,” Williams said. “It’s definitely rewarding and enlightening to how much trash there is. You don’t notice how much there is until you carry it out in garbage bags.”
For 56-year-old Victoria Harrison@@CANNOT VERIFY@@, a member of the Willamette Kayak and Canoe Club, the cleanup allowed her to give back to the community as well as appreciate the Willamette River from a different view.
“I usually just kayak straight down the river without noticing the banks,” Harrison said. “The cleanup gave me an intimate look at the shoreside.”@@http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shoreside@@
This year’s cleanup was organized by Willamette Riverkeeper, REI, City of Eugene Parks and Open Space volunteer program, City of Springfield and Willamalane Park & Recreation District. Support was provided by HIV Alliance, UO Outdoor Program, Willamette Kayak and Canoe Club, Eugene Master Recyclers, Pacific Recycling and Sanipac@@list borrowed from RG article: http://www.registerguard.com/web/newslocalnews/26992670-41/river-willamette-clean-eugene-park.html.csp@@.
Two years ago, the Portland-based nonprofit organization Willamette Riverkeeper hosted the first Great Willamette Cleanup. According to Emmons, volunteers collected 72 yards of garbage from the river, including shopping carts, kitchen appliances and even bicycles, one of which a volunteer estimated to be around $1,000.
A celebration for those who participated followed the cleanup at Maurie Jacobs Park@@CE@@. It included giveaways, raffle prizes, pizza and refreshments provided by Track Town Pizza, TEVA and REI.
University senior Kyle Osborne@@CE@@ took part in the cleanup last year and volunteered again this year. He appreciates the annual effort and hopes that continued efforts will spark even more participation and better habits in the future.
“When people see us with our volunteer shirts, they get interested,” he said. “It helps raise awareness and makes people think before throwing stuff into the river.”
University students, community members volunteer in Willamette River cleanup
Daily Emerald
October 8, 2011
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