Since Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful launched its Adopt a River Mile program in 2018, the aim has been to promote stewardship of local waterways by achieving at least 15 river miles adopted by local individuals or groups each year.
Thanks to rallying efforts by local citizens, that goal has more than doubled within the first two months of 2021. Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful (KTNRB) is now seeking a title sponsor for their Adopt a River Mile program to see that the momentum of supporting locals who take action for their river continues to grow. Such a sponsorship would allow KTNRB to continue shipping cleanup supplies and volunteer shirts to new adoptees as they are rapidly increasing in number.
For example, West Tenn. resident Cereice Morris has challenged the members of her “The Beach at Clifton, TN” Facebook group to adopt every river mile within their community. The result was explosive, with literally a dozen river miles being adopted within a few hours of her Facebook post and only 6 river miles remaining to be adopted in their 40-mile targeted region.
“Cereice made an inspiring decision to go beyond adopting a river mile for herself, to rally other individuals, businesses, and local governments to adopt (at the moment) 33 additional river miles in her community,” said Kathleen Gibi, KTNRB Executive Director. “It’s the kind of inspiring stewardship that will pave the way to changing the litter presence in one of the nation’s most beautiful and biodiverse river systems.”
Gibi said that the remarkable response in river mile adoptions this year, with over 40 adopted in total, have left KTNRB seeking a title sponsor for their program in hopes that Cereice’s example will spread throughout the 42,000 miles of rivers and streams within the seven-state Tennessee River watershed.
Every participant in KTNRB’s Adopt a River Mile program receives a package that includes river cleanup supplies, volunteer t-shirts, and stainless-steel water bottles (an example of a solution to the plethora of cups, bottles, and cans plaguing river shorelines). They also receive a free sign with the individual/group name declaring the river mile under their care.
“The group around Clifton, Tenn. put us in a wonderful position of seeking further financial support for a program that has clearly taken off, because we’ve long-since busted our budget for supplies,” said Gibi. “Hopefully that momentum train—or probably more appropriate, momentum barge—isn’t stopping anytime soon if we can get the support we need.”
The original scope of the program has historically been supported through a work plan that KTNRB has with the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), who has also been a big supporter of KTNRB’s river cleanups including help with purchasing their 25-foot work boat. The adoption signs are provided by KTNRB partner and national nonprofit, Living Lands & Waters.
To date, Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful has supported the adoption of 90 river miles along the Tennessee River and its tributaries.
Gibi said that there are plenty of examples of passionate river mile adoptees in various regions of the Tennessee River watershed, but none that have yet generated such a rapid and extensive domino effect of further adoptions. For that, Cereice Morris, a Memphis, Tenn. resident who owns a houseboat and several Airbnb properties in the Clifton, Tenn. area, takes the prize.
“We’ve had people who love this part of the river for its sandy beaches and have been cleaning up litter here for over 25 years, but this program has legitimized our work and I feel like we’re finally getting something done,” said Morris. “It’s not just a beautiful place we love—we have Airbnb properties here and therefore a vested interest in keeping those property values up.”
Gibi said that Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful is continuing to improve its Adopt a River Mile program. For example, they recently added an online form where adoptees can report the tallies of trash bags, tires, etc. collected so that they can learn the total impact in poundage that they are directly making for the Tennessee River.
To take action with the Adopt a River Mile program now:
To become a title sponsor for KTNRB’s Adopt a River Mile program:
Call 865-386-3926 or e-mail Kathleen@KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org.To adopt a river mile within the Tennessee River system: www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org/adopt
To make a donation to Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful:
www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org/donate.
