 The Swannanoa River has a dirty secret,...it's TRASHED! For the last 50 years, the Swannanoa River has been a dumping ground for our unwanted items. Anything from tires, to construction material and even household garbage have found it's way into her waters. The river has accepted these items and without a voice of it's own has been silent to the abuse. From the early days of "Quality '76" our volunteers have paddled, waded and heaved trash from her waters. Only to have more dumped in by those who seek convenience over conscience. Year to date, our volunteers have hauled out 2,025 tires from our local rivers, streams, roadsides and dumpsites. That beats last years' collection number by 800 tires!  What's the solution? Taking back this waterway through proper usage education and cleanups. The more we utilize this wonderful resource through parks, greenways, paddling and pleasure the better the water quality will be for everyone down river. There are several great put in and take outs along the Swannanoa with varying degrees of difficulty to suit your abilities.  Join us Saturday Sept 21st at the NC Big Sweep as we continue our struggle to relieve the Swannanoa of her burden.
We're taking teams and individuals on a cleanup that spans the majority of the river. Event details: Meetup 10am - Zen Tubing to receive your orientation and select your section of the river to cleanup. Dress for success as we will be in the water with tools, hauling out years of trash from the river. We recommend that you wear swim gear under shorts and wear river sandals / old tennis shoes. Bring a change of clothing, ID and a towel for the Sierra Nevada Brewing after party. 2pm - The cleanup is officially over, head back to Zen Tubing for the cleanup party. If you're able to help out, please email: volunteer@ashevillegreenworks.org or Call Eric @ 828-254-1776 Comments are closed.
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