Volunteers netted an estimated 1,100 pounds of trash and recyclables at the Bureau of Reclamation’s cleanup at New Melones Lake.
September 19, 2015 - Auburn – Today, the primary source of California’s water supply is a little bit cleaner thanks to the nearly 3,000 volunteers that joined together to remove more than 61 tons of trash from the rivers, lakes, and streams of the Sierra Nevada region. Volunteers of all ages worked side by side to pull appliances, fast food wrappers, shopping carts, tires, and more from mountain and foothill waterways during the seventh annual Great Sierra River Cleanup. This event, coordinated by the Sierra Nevada Conservancy and held in partnership with California Coastal Cleanup Day, serves to promote good stewardship throughout the state’s watersheds, from the Sierra to the sea.
“The Sierra Nevada region is the primary source of drinking and irrigation water for the state,” says Jim Branham, Executive Officer for the Sierra Nevada Conservancy. “The time and effort our volunteers continue to invest, year after year, demonstrates just how important the watersheds of the Sierra are to California.”
This year the California Conservation Corps sponsored the Great Sierra River Cleanup’s first ‘Most Unusual Item’ contest, with prizes donated by Mountainsmith and Danner Boots. Volunteers and cleanup coordinators submitted their unusual finds ranging from old mining machinery, to a porta potty, to a flip flop in a crawdad trap. Winners will be announced next week.
The Great Sierra River Cleanup complements recent efforts in Sacramento to bring attention to the challenges that the Sierra Nevada region is facing, and highlights current work to protect and restore all of the resources that the Sierra provides. Earlier this month Assembly Member Brian Dahle (R - Bieber) authored Assembly Concurrent Resolution 22, which establishes the third week of September as “Sierra Nevada Watershed Protection Week.” The measure passed both houses of the legislature without a dissenting vote.
The Great Sierra River Cleanup would not be possible without the hard work of thousands of volunteers, dozens of local community groups, and our supporters at the California Coastal Commission, the California Conservation Corps, Sacramento Municipal Utility District, Sierra Pacific Industries, Pacific Gas & Electric, Mountainsmith, and Danner Boots.
Final results from this year’s event, a list of participating organizations, and event photos are available at www.sierranevada.ca.govand on the Great Sierra River Cleanup Facebook page.
California Conservation Corps crewmembers and volunteers with the Alpine Watershed Group cleaning up the East Fork of the Carson River.
About the Sierra Nevada Conservancy
Created in 2004, the Sierra Nevada Conservancy (SNC) is a state agency whose mission is to improve the environmental, economic, and social well-being of the Sierra Nevada Region. The SNC has awarded over $50 million in grants for projects to protect and enhance the health of California’s primary watersheds by improving forest health, remediating mercury contamination from abandoned mines, protecting critical natural resources, and reducing the risk of catastrophic wildfire. Funding for these projects came from Proposition 84 passed by voters in 2006. The Sierra Nevada Region spans 25 million acres, encompasses all or part of 22 counties, and runs from the Oregon border on the north, to Kern County on the south. The Region is the origin of more than 60 percent of California’s developed water supply.
Source: Sierra Nevada Conservancy
