Teaming Up to Help Rivers Survive
From Business Wire
Politicians, Celebrities, Environmentalists and Businesses Team Up to Help Rivers ‘Survive’
To celebrate Earth Day, D.C. Mayor Anthony A. Williams joined Survivor winners Ethan Zohn and Jenna Morasca, DC United players Josh Gros and Bryan Namoff, conservation groups and volunteers on the banks of the Potomac River near the Washington Channel. On the river behind them floated a 140-foot barge stacked with 40 tons of trash collected during the Capital River Relief project.
Capital River Relief, themed “Team Up to Clean Up,” is a partnership of environmental groups, community and government organizations, businesses and individuals joining together to improve the Potomac and Anacostia rivers and watersheds. April 1, Capital River Relief began holding major cleanup events to remove trash and draw attention to other pollution issues that affect the health and beauty of capital-area rivers — and rivers everywhere. This unprecedented cleanup was organized by Chad Pregracke, founder of Living Lands & Waters; Doug Siglin, director of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s Anacostia River Initiative; and founding sponsor, Koch Industries.
“Efforts like the Capital River Relief project show people in a very dramatic way why we all need to pitch in to clean up our city’s waterways,” Mayor Williams said. “The Anacostia and the Potomac are spectacular natural resources, and I appreciate the work of the people here today who are helping to keep them beautiful.”
The barge is currently filled with heaps of tires, bags of plastic and glass bottles, candy wrappers and other garbage gathered from the rivers. As of Wednesday, Pregracke, his crew and volunteers had filled 3,000 bags with trash, and gathered 746 tires, 25 fifty-five gallon barrels, 12 shopping carts, seven refrigerators, six messages in bottles, three water heaters and one mannequin hand. All the junk will be carefully sorted; recyclable items will be transported to recycling facilities, other items will be taken to conventional landfills.
“You wouldn’t believe the amount of trash that’s out there piled up on the riverbanks. It’s incredible,” said Survivor Africa winner Ethan Zohn, who spent the morning gathering trash with volunteers. “But when you see all of these people volunteering their time to do something about it, it gives me hope that things can get better.”
“Cleanups like this are incredibly rewarding, but it’s unfortunate they are necessary at all,” said Jenna Morasca, winner of Survivor The Amazon. “It makes you realize how much easier it is to dispose of trash properly in the first place.”
Pregracke’s organization, Living Lands & Waters, has removed more than 900 tons of trash from America’s rivers, including the Mississippi, Ohio, Missouri and Illinois. Koch Industries, based in Wichita, Kansas, took a lead role in funding the project and bringing Living Lands & Waters to the capital region after helping with Mississippi River cleanups.
“We are thrilled with the amount of work we have been able to do in these rivers,” Pregracke said. “The volunteers have been amazing. The local groups who are working on river issues throughout the year have been a great support. We’re having such success that we hope to be able to return next year.”
Today’s Capital River Relief volunteers came from the Potomac Conservancy and Timberland, Inc.
Capital River Relief will conclude on Saturday, April 24, after which Pregracke and his crew will finish the process of sorting the recyclable trash.
“We came to DC to help make a difference, and working together, we certainly have,” Pregracke said pointing to the trash-filled barge behind him. “And there is definitely more to be done.”
Capital River Relief Partners
Alexandria Seaport Foundation, Alice Ferguson Foundation, American Waterways Operators, Chesapeake Bay Foundation, DC Department of Parks and Recreation, Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin, Earth Conservation Corps, Living Lands & Waters, Potomac Conservancy, and Potomac Riverkeeper.
Capital River Relief Sponsors
Koch Industries, Inc. (founding sponsor); Alcoa; American Honda Motor Co., Inc.; American Waterways Operators; Anacostia River Business Coalition; Arnold & Porter LLP; Blank Rome; Cargill; Caterpillar; Grafik Marketing Communications; Hotel Helix; Hunton & Williams; Lafarge North America, Inc.; McDonough Marine Service Corp.; Mimi’s American Bistro; Moran Towing Corporation; National Fish and Wildlife Foundation; National Park Service; O’Doul’s; Pepco; South Capitol Street Heliport; Spirit Cruises; Steuart Investment; US Army Corps of Engineers and Whole Foods Market.
Media Notes: For media materials or to schedule interviews with Chad Pregracke or Capital River Relief volunteers, please contact Burke Olsen at 202-414-0773 or bolsen@susandavis.com. Find more information at http://www.capitalriverrelief.org.