The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection is sponsoring the 20th annual Great Kanawha River cleanup from 8 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Sept. 12.
A rain date has been set for Saturday, Sept. 19, but will only be used in the event of serious weather issues such as lightning or high winds.
Various sites along the Kanawha River in Mason, Fayette, Putnam and Kanawha counties have been targeted for litter cleanup. Last year, nearly seven tons of trash was removed from the river and its banks.
Scheduled to join this year’s volunteer efforts is a number of high school foreign exchange students, who are attending schools in Kanawha County. The students are from China, Indonesia, Turkmenistan and Ukraine. They’ll be working on Magic Island in Charleston.
Volunteers are urged to wear long pants, hard-soled shoes and work gloves and all volunteers will receive a free T-shirt. Children under the age of 18 should be accompanied by a parent or adult. To register, contact Travis Cooper at 1-800-322-5530 or by email at: Travis.L.Cooper@wv.gov.
The DEP’s Rehabilitation Environmental Action Plan (REAP) is coordinating the cleanup. REAP provides oversight of litter removal, recycling and open dump cleanups across West Virginia.