Volunteers Remove 18.3 Tons (16,648 Lbs) of Trash from Four Rivers in ‘Cherokee National Forest River Cleanup Series’

Volunteers pose with the trash collected at one site on Tellico Lake in Vonore, TN.

A collective 47 volunteers removed 16,648 lbs. of trash from four different rivers in a month-long series in Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful’s 2nd annual Cherokee National Forest River Cleanup Series. The most recent series total has the river cleanup nonprofit right on track with its record-breaking year in 2021, in which more than 700 volunteers removed over 152,000 lbs. of trash.

Cleaning up a cove on Tellico Lake in Vonore, TN.

“As awe-inspiring as the natural scenery is around the Cherokee National Forest’s rivers, we were even more inspired by the enthusiasm of our volunteers that took each cleanup to the highest level possible,” said Kathleen Gibi, Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful (KTNRB) Executive Director.

KTNRB hosted five river cleanups through February and March, collaborating with local Keep America Beautiful affiliates and local governments:

CHEROKEE NATIONAL FOREST RIVER CLEANUP SERIES RESULTS

Feb. 12     Tellico Lake of the Little Tennessee River  Vonore, TN                 4,742 lbs.         12 volunteers  

Feb. 13      Parksville Lake of the Ocoee River             Benton, TN                  2,288 lbs.        12 volunteers

Feb. 26      Watauga Lake of the Watauga River          Elizabethton, TN        4,616 lbs.        8 volunteers

Feb. 27      South Holston Lake on the Holston River   Abingdon, VA           1,693 lbs.        3 volunteers

Mar. 5       Tellico Lake of the Little Tennessee River  Vonore, TN                 3,309 lbs.        12 volunteers

                                                                                                                         16,648 lbs.     47 volunteers

Volunteers with the trash they collected on Parksville Lake in Ocoee, TN.

The 47 volunteers had other harrowing statistics from their efforts, including a total of 381 bags of trash and 89 tires removed.

“The impressive numbers we reached over the last four weeks wouldn’t have been possible without our hard-working volunteers and collaborative partners,” said Gibi. “It takes a village to put the kind of trash into the river that our volunteers pulled out, and this series showed the fact that we’ve got a strong village willing to protect our waterways at the same time.”

Volunteer participants ranged from individuals, to parents and their kids, to former marines, to the Theta Tau engineering fraternity from the University of Tennessee, to marina owners, to a Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency officer, to a repeat volunteer who has now been to KTNRB’s farthest reaching cleanups on either end of the Tennessee River watershed. 

Volunteers with the trash they collected on South Holston Lake in Abingdon, VA.

The final cleanup on Tellico Lake was comprised solely of members of the Schaad Family and Company. In addition to participating in the cleanup, the Schaad Family made a generous donation of $15,000 to KTNRB.

Partners like Keep Cleveland & Bradley County Beautiful, Keep Carter County Beautiful, Keep Jonesborough Beautiful, and Keep Southwest Virginia Beautiful all played a huge role in organizational details, recruiting, and participation. Monroe County Government, Waste Connections of Tennessee – Cleveland Hauling, Carter County Solid Waste, and GFL Environmental all donated dumpster services for the trash to be hauled away from each cleanup.

The series was largely made possible by funding received from the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and the Tennessee Dept. of Transportation’s ‘Nobody Trashes Tennessee’ litter campaign.  

KTNRB plans to host its 3rd annual Cherokee National Forest River Cleanup Series in 2023. For more information about KTNRB’s schedule, please visit www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org/upcomingcleanups.

Volunteers cleanup trash in a cove on Watauga Lake in Carter County, TN.

130 Volunteers Pull 34,500 lbs. of Trash in October Alone, Smashing River Group’s 2021 Goal of Removing 125,000 lbs. in One Year

Volunteers at a river cleanup held on Watts Bar of the Tennessee River in Ten Mile, Tenn. on Saturday, Oct. 2, 2021

A sum of 134 volunteers participated at six river cleanups hosted by Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful (KTNRB), helping to remove 34,481 lbs. of trash from the Tennessee and Cumberland rivers in October. The month was declared by four governors and four mayors to be ‘Keep the Tennessee River Watershed Beautiful Month.’

“This past month’s success is a testament to the energy buzzing around the Tennessee River watershed thanks to dozens of invested partners, hundreds of passionate volunteers, and many supporting sponsors,” said Kathleen Gibi, KTNRB Executive Director. “None of this would be possible without them, and more than ever, I think we’re seeing the significant impact we can make for this river when we work together!”

Volunteers at the cleanup held on Guntersville Lake of the Tennessee River.

October’s massive total helped KTNRB to blow out of the water (pun intended) their ‘125,000 lb. Goal for 2021 River Cleanups presented by YETI.’ The river group is now sitting at 147,511 lbs. of trash removed by 671 volunteers just this year, which is more than twice their previous record of 61,500 lbs. set in 2020. KTNRB was able to extend its goal of removing 100,000 lbs. to 125,000 lbs. earlier this year after receiving a sponsorship from YETI, allowing the group to host more river cleanups.

Of the 147,511 lbs. of trash removed this year, Gibi estimated that single-use drink containers such as aluminum cans, Styrofoam cups, or glass and plastic bottles comprised over 44,500 lbs. She called that number a “lowball estimate” percentage of what filled the 3,176 bags of trash removed by volunteers in 2021.
 

RIVER CLEANUPS

KTNRB set other new records and firsts with river cleanups last month. For starters, 38 volunteers removed the most trash at any cleanup held on Pickwick Lake in Iuka, Miss./Hardin County, Tenn. with 6,850 lbs. removed. 

A new record was also set for the most trash removed at one KTNRB cleanup, with 30 volunteers removing 12,489 lbs. of trash in just four hours. Much of the trash collected that day included dock floats, large Styrofoam blocks, and tires, presumably accumulated on the Kentucky Lake shores in Benton, Ky. following severe tornadoes and floods that have occurred over the last few years.

Kathleen Gibi, Executive Director for KTNRB, drives the boat in front of the Nashville skyline on the Cumberland River.

The month also introduced some firsts for KTNRB, the most obvious being a cleanup held on the Cumberland River, which is out of the nonprofit’s typical area of service. A Swiss watch-making company happened to be hosting a conference for their North American offices in Nashville, heard about the river cleanup group, and asked them to host a river cleanup from the Opryland Convention Center’s nearby boat ramp so that their 40+ attendees could contribute to the community where they were convening.

Other firsts for KTNRB last month came with cleanups hosted in the cities of Ten Mile, Tenn., Scottsboro, Ala., and Benton, Ky. for the first time.

“It’s exciting to see energy building in areas where we’ve been hosting cleanups, but I’m always even more inspired when we can see people’s eyes light up when we’re hosting a cleanup in a community for the first time,” Gibi said, noting that Scottsboro, Ala.  area had four new river adoptions following their cleanup held there on Oct. 1. 

Volunteers at the cleanup on Kentucky Lake of the Tennessee River.

“I love this cleanup series, because  you can really see the impact that’s possible when we’re reinforced by the energy level that the crew from a powerhouse like Living Lands & Waters brings,” Gibi said.

Four of October’s cleanups were assisted by the national nonprofit, Living Lands & Waters (LL&W), who brought their five 30-foot work boats to supplement KTNRB’s 26-foot boat. LL&W has been operating since 1998, removing more than 11 million lbs. of trash from North American rivers and ultimately playing a large part in KTNRB’s forming along with the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and Keep Tennessee Beautiful (KTnB).  

“These cleanups were fun for everyone involved and I feel like this month in particular really showcased just how much KTNRB has grown,” said Dan Breidenstein of Living Lands & Waters who also serves as KTNRB Board VP. “We always enjoy working with them and it’s rewarding to see them accomplish so much. 

Throughout the month of October, KTNRB traveled to the four states touched by the main stem of the Tennessee River, which includes Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky. The cleanup series was funded by TVA, Tennessee Department of Transportation, KTnB, Yamaha Rightwaters™, and YETI. 

Of the 34,481 lbs. of trash removed at these six cleanups last month, 134 volunteers helped to remove 633 bags of trash and 111 tires, among many other items. Here’s a breakdown of each cleanup’s totals:

10.1.21            Scottsboro, AL (Guntersville Lake)       |    3,917 lbs.    |    8 volunteers
10.2.21             Ten Mile, TN (Watts Bar Lake)              |    5,584 lbs.    |    13 volunteers
10.13.21          Nashville, TN (Cumberland River)       |    4,280 lbs.    |    42 volunteers
10.15.21          Iuka, MS (Pickwick Lake)                      |    6,850 lbs.    |    38 volunteers
10.16.21          Benton, KY (Kentucky Lake)                 |    12,489 lbs.  |    30 volunteers
10.25.21          Knoxville, TN (Fort Loudoun Lake)       |     1,361  lbs.  |    3 volunteers

PROCLAMATIONS

Each year, KTNRB seeks proclamations from elected officials to declare October as ‘Keep the Tennessee River Watershed Beautiful Month.’ This year, four governors and four mayors made proclamations, including:

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee                           Knoxville, TN Mayor Indya Kincannon
Alabama Governor Kay Ivey                             Kingston, TN Mayor Timothy Neal
Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves                  Scottsboro, AL Mayor Jim McCamy
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear                  Florence, AL Mayor Andy Betterton

Mayor McCamy of Scottsboro, Ala. signs a proclamation declaring October 2021 to be ‘Keep the Tennessee River Watershed Beautiful Month.’

RIPPLE EFFECT AWARDS

The 3rd annual Ripple Effect Awards presented by Yamaha Rightwaters™ will be presented digitally again this year due to COVID-19, and nominations to KTNRB were closed last month. River champions in three different geographic regions within the Tennessee River watershed are recognized for their river stewardship.

Traditionally, the awards are presented at a banquet held before a large river cleanup during Keep the Tennessee River Watershed Beautiful Month. While the highly sought-after glass-blown trophies will still be awarded, they will be presented via professionally produced virtual videos later this year. Winners will be announced before the end of the year.

A group of volunteers at the Pickwick Lake cleanup held in Iuka, Miss./Hardin County, Tenn.

After Removing 4,280 Lbs. of Trash from the Cumberland River, Oris Pledges $15,000 for the 2022 ‘Keep the Tennessee River Watershed Beautiful Month’

Attendees at the 2021 Oris North American Convention participated in a cleanup on the Cumberland River with Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful.

On Wednesday, October 13, 2021, 42 representatives from Oris, the international Swiss watch-making company, removed 4,280 lbs. of trash from the Cumberland River at a cleanup during the company’s week-long North American conference held in Nashville, Tenn.

“For working in just an hour and a half’s time, it was amazing to see the huge impact that we can make for our rivers, which serve as the starting point of water quality worldwide,” said VJ Geronimo, CEO for Oris’ North American Office and participant in the Oris river cleanup last month. 

Earlier in October, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee and other elected officials declared the month to be ‘Keep the Tennessee River Watershed Beautiful Month.’ Oris’ cleanup was one of six held in the four states touched by the Tennessee River during the month-long celebration. Traditionally in the last few years, Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful (KTNRB) volunteers have removed over 30,000 lbs. of trash from waterways through the month of October.

Oris has now pledged $15,000 to be the title sponsor for KTNRB’s ‘2022 Keep the Tennessee River Watershed Beautiful Month.’ The company will once again have a team of professionals participate in a river cleanup, this time within the Tennessee River watershed.

“This cleanup with Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful was certainly eye-opening for our team, and we’re looking forward to helping this group make an even bigger impact next year,” said Geronimo.

Though the Cumberland River doesn’t fall within the typical scope of work for KTNRB, Executive Director Kathleen Gibi said they agreed to host the event after being invited by conference organizers at Oris and learning more about the company’s history of environmental efforts.

Earlier this year, Oris reached a ‘climate-neutral status,’ which means that the company has achieved net zero greenhouse gas emissions, meaning that Oris’ gas emissions put out are equal to or less than the emissions they save. The company also uses upcycled materials for its watches and its employees have participated in beach and river cleanups around the globe.

“It’s been both exciting and inspiring to partner with an international company that keeps water quality at the forefront of its work the way that Oris has for years,” said Gibi. “The group—as individual employees and as a collective team—brought an energy level and passion to the cleanup that was contagious, so we’re thrilled to move ahead in river conservation with Oris.”

Gibi pointed out that Oris’ initiating the river cleanup in Nashville already drew more partners together in the river cleanup world. The Oris participants ventured down from their conference at the Opryland Convention Center to a boat ramp adjacent to the property. There, they boarded the KTNRB work boat and boats provided by the Nashville District Army Corps of Engineers - Cheatham Lake Project to clean shorelines along the Cumberland River. VaVia of Nashville provided a full-sized roll-off dumpster for free, which was filled to the brim when the cleanup was finished.

 “This cleanup wouldn’t have been possible without the partners that pulled together, and I have to say that the Army Corps of Engineers saved the day by bringing enough boats to transport the huge turnout of Oris volunteers,” said Gibi. “Public-private sectors pulling together for this river is how we see true change for the better take place, and we’re grateful to all parties involved, especially to Oris for setting everything into motion.”

 For more information on Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful, visit www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org.

TDOT Awards Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful with $180,000 Grant for Preventative Infrastructure and River Cleanups

Earlier this month, Gov. Bill Lee declared October to officially be ‘Keep the Tennessee River Watershed Beautiful Month.’ In celebration, Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful (KTNRB) has hosted cleanups supported in part by a Special Litter Grant from the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT).

Volunteers pose with the ’trash boats’ filled with the 5,584 lbs. of trash that they collected at the Tennessee River cleanup held in Ten Mile, Tenn. on Oct. 2, 2021.

“The KTNRB team has been rapidly expanding their impact on litter removal from the Tennessee River watershed, having rallied over 600 volunteers to remove 135,000 lbs. of trash from our waterways just in 2021 alone,” said Mike McClanahan, Manager with TDOT’s Highway Beautification Office. “The energized partnerships, passionate volunteers, and growing litter prevention awareness around KTNRB’s work are contagious, as demonstrated in their cleanups held earlier this month.”

Cleanups were held in both Meigs County and Hardin County, Tenn. this month, where a combined 51 volunteers helped to remove a total of 12,434 lbs. of trash from the Tennessee River within several hours. The totals from these two events, however, are just the beginning.

The $180,000 grant from TDOT will be used towards continued river cleanup efforts as well as new, preventative infrastructure that will be installed along the Tennessee River watershed.

“TDOT has been a part of the KTNRB story from Day 1, and is giving us just the kind of boost we need to not only sustain our existing cleanup efforts, but to address the litter crisis from the multi-layered approach that it’s going to take in order to make true change for our local waterways,” said Kathleen Gibi, KTNRB Executive Director.

The grant entails a five-part work plan:

PREVENTATIVE INFRASTRUCTURE

The Seabin device installed at Volunteer Landing Marina captures litter from the Tennessee River in Knoxville, Tenn.

A load of litter and marine debris, including a cigarette, styrofoam, and pill bottle lid, that was pulled out of the Seabin device installed at Volunteer Landing Marina in Knoxville, Tenn.

1.   Purchase of Ten New Seabin Devices
Through a grant from Keep America Beautiful in early 2021, KTNRB launched a pilot test run of two Seabin devices, which were installed at Volunteer Landing Marina and Louisville Landing Marina in the Knoxville area. The devices are essentially large electric skimmers attached to docks that work 24/7, removing up to 3,000 lbs. of trash and debris from the water in one year. Additionally, the devices filter out oils, gasoline, and microplastics from the water.

“This part of the grant is particularly exciting for us because until now, our efforts have been to preventmicroplastics,” said Gibi. “For the first time, we now have the opportunity to literally remove them from the river’s waters.”

Through the TDOT grant, ten new devices will be installed at partnering marinas on the Tennessee River and its tributaries, making it the largest network of such devices on a water system in the United States. Given that KTNRB was recently awarded another two Seabin devices from Keep America Beautiful, that’s a potential of 42,000 lbs. of trash removed annually by the Seabin devices installed within the Tennessee River system.

2.   Purchase of Storm Drain Catch Nets
The grant from TDOT will also allow for the purchase of several storm drain catch nets. These have been widely used in Australia and essentially look like a large, metal netted socks that attach to the end of a storm drain.

KTNRB staff will monitor and maintain one catch net in the Knoxville, Tenn. area and will seek out partners to maintain several other catch nets on the Tennessee River or its tributaries within the State of Tennessee.

Gibi said that the intent is to install the catch nets on drains near state-managed freeways so that the litter collected can be analyzed and reported back to TDOT. If all goes well, KTNRB will pursue installing more drains to protect the river from the source of much of the litter found in our waterways.

Experts have found that 80% of the litter in our waterways was originally littered on land, often then washed or blown by storms into our storm drain systems, streams, and ultimately rivers. Tennessee’s Nobody Trashes Tennessee litter prevention campaign estimates that there are 100 million pieces of litter on the state’s roadways at any given time.

CONTINUED RIVER CLEANUP/PROGRAM EFFORTS

Volunteers set a new record for a KTNRB cleanup on Pickwick after removing 6,850 lbs. of trash from the Tennessee River at a cleanup held in Hardin County, Tenn. on October 15, 2021.

3.   Continued Support of Eight Major River Cleanups
Funds will support KTNRB to contract he national nonprofit, Living Lands & Waters, to bring five 30-foot work boats to supplement KTNRB’s 26-foot work boat. Cleanups will take place in:

a.    October 2021
- Meigs County, Tenn. on Watts Bar Lake [COMPLETED]
  13 volunteers removed 5,584 lbs. of trash
- Hardin County, Tenn. on Pickwick Lake [COMPLETED]
  38 volunteers removed 6,850 lbs. of trash

b.   March/April 2022
- New Johnsonville, Tenn. on Kentucky Lake 
- Paris, Tenn. on Kentucky Lake

c.    October 2022
-  Farragut/Lenoir City, Tenn. on Fort Loudoun Lake
-  Soddy Daisy/Chattanooga, Tenn. on Chickamauga Lake

A Tennessee State Park official stands with one of the KTNRB cigarette receptacles installed on Kentucky Lake.

d.   March/April 2023
- Pittsburgh/Jasper, Tenn. on Nickajack Lake
- Morristown/Bean Station, Tenn. on Cherokee Lake

4.   Supporting the Cigarette Litter Prevention Program
TDOT has already helped to fund art wraps for cigarette receptacles that KTNRB had designed to both raise water quality awareness and prevent cigarette litter. There are currently 500 cigarette receptacles installed throughout the seven-state Tennessee River watershed.

Dollywood currently has 26 receptacles installed and is the first theme park in the world to recycle every cigarette butt discarded within their park. Additionally, over 100 receptacles were recently installed at every campground and marina owned by Tennessee State Parks.

Partners at locations like marinas, campgrounds, and tourism sites install and maintain the receptacles. Rather than disposing of the cigarettes, they’re shipped to TerraCycle at no cost for the microfibers of plastic located in the cigarette filters to then be recycled into items like outdoor plastic furniture. The TDOT grant will help to support the costs of upkeeping this program for the receptacles installed in Tennessee. 

In the program’s first shipments to TerraCycle, 71,000 cigarette butts have been recycled through KTNRB’s program. Gibi estimates this program to have the potential of recycling up to 1 million cigarette butts each year.

5.   Furthering the Adopt a River Mile/Adopt a Storm Drain Programs
KTNRB offers free cleanup gear and swag for those who participate in the Adopt a River Mile or Adopt a Storm Drain programs. In 2021, river mile adoptions soared, and KTNRB now has 105 river miles adopted. For perspective, the Tennessee River is 652-miles long.

The TDOT grant will support this program by covering costs of supplies and shipping of packages for adoptions that take place within the State of Tennessee.

“This work plan represents a strategic effort that we’ve been working toward for the last couple of years, and it’s really commendable that TDOT sees the need to make such an investment the Tennessee River watershed, the original transportation system for our region,” said Gibi.

To learn more about Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful, visit www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org. 

River Group Reaches 100,000 lbs. of Trash Removed in 2021, Heads into October’s ‘Keep the Tennessee River Watershed Beautiful Month’

KTNRB supported the Cherokee Lake Users Association’s river cleanup with volunteers of Carson Newman University on the day of hitting 100,000 lbs. of trash removed from our waterways in 2021.

Over 500 volunteers have helped Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful (KTNRB) remove more than 100,000 pounds of trash from the Tennessee River and its tributaries this year in the group’s ‘125,000 Lb. Goal for 2021 River Cleanups presented by YETI.’

“It’s been truly inspiring for us to see the volunteers and partners step up to accomplish so much together for our precious river system,” said Kathleen Gibi, KTNRB Executive Director. “We’re especially grateful to YETI for making such an aspirational goal possible and for showing everyone else that our rivers are worth the investment.”

Based off of weight totals KTNRB has been tallying throughout the year, Gibi estimates that throwaway drink containers make up at least 32,000 pounds from the 2,273 bags of trash that the volunteers have collected so far this year.

The river group surpassed 100,000 pounds in 2021 at a cleanup held in Talbott, Tenn. on Tuesday, Sept. 29. They reached the milestone just in time for the launch of the month-long tour of cleanups in Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky in celebration of October being declared ‘Keep the Tennessee River Watershed Beautiful Month’ (KTNRWB Month). 

Gibi said that the celebratory month is often the ‘bread and butter’ of their trash totals and that the group is staged to easily reach their 125,000-pound goal for the year with the upcoming cleanups.

The month will also include the 3rd annual Ripple Effect Awards presented by Yamaha Rightwaters™ and proclamations from governors and mayors across the Tennessee River watershed.

Volunteers pose with their collected trash at a 2020 KTNRWB Month cleanup on Pickwick Lake partnered with Living Lands & Waters.

RIVER CLEANUPS 

KTNRB is partnering once again with Living Lands & Waters (LL&W), a national nonprofit that cleans North American rivers and who brings their five 30-foot aluminum boats, adding to KTNRB’s boat so that even more volunteers can participate. 

“Living Lands & Waters is always happy to be a part of KTNRB cleanups and we feel fortunate to help them reach their 125,000-pound goal on one of the nation’s most amazing rivers!” said Chad Pregracke, Founder of LL&W and 2013 CNN Hero of the Year.

The cleanups during Keep the Tennessee River Watershed Beautiful Month are scheduled as follows:

Friday, Oct. 1               Scottsboro, AL | Guntersville Lake
Saturday, Oct. 2          Ten Mile, TN | Watts Bar Lake
Friday, Oct. 15             Iuka, MS/Hardin, TN | Pickwick Lake
Saturday, Oct. 16        Hardin, KY | Kentucky Lake

KTNRB will hold more cleanups with its individual boat throughout October. Volunteers may register for any cleanup atwww.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org/upcomingcleanups. 

PARTNERSHIPS & PROCLAMATIONS

TDOT’s Mike McClanahan reads Tennessee Governor Bill Lee’s proclamation at a ceremony held before a 2019 KTNRWB Month river cleanup.

Gibi said that it was the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), that originally challenged KTNRB to celebrate an awareness month for the Tennessee River. The awareness month was launched in the state of Tennessee in 2018 and has now expanded into a seven-state awareness campaign in 2021. 

Proclamations from governors and mayors within all seven states (TN, AL, MS, KY, GA, VA, NC) of the Tennessee River watershed are pursued during the month. Last year, four governors and four mayors issued proclamations for Keep the Tennessee River Watershed Beautiful Month.

TVA and Keep Tennessee Beautiful (funded by the Tennessee Department of Transportation) were the founding partners who initiated the formation of KTNRB as a nonprofit that would champion support and protection for the 652-mile Tennessee River. Since forming, KTNRB has rallied more than 2,200 volunteers to remove over 275,000 pounds of trash from the Tennessee River and its tributaries.

As KTNRWB Month is celebrated in different states, Keep Tennessee Beautiful, Keep Alabama Beautiful, Keep Mississippi Beautiful, and the Land Between the Lakes have served as acting co-organizers. Local nonprofits such as other Keep America Beautiful affiliates and the Friends of Land Between the Lakes are also supporting partners.

The KTNRWB Month cleanups held in Tennessee are largely funded through Tennessee Department of Transportation and Keep Tennessee Beautiful. Additionally, TVA has funded KTNRB’s efforts since its inception and serves as a major supporter of KTNRWB Month.
 

RIPPLE EFFECT AWARDS

Coupled with the river cleanups during ‘Keep the Tennessee River Watershed Beautiful Month’ will be the 3rd annual Ripple Effect Awards presented by Yamaha Rightwaters™. Judges from national-level organizations and companies have been enlisted to select from nominated outstanding champions for the Tennessee River to be recognized and awarded glass-blown trophies. 

Nominations for the awards have been extended to Friday, October 15, and may be submitted at www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org/awards.

For full information and links on Keep the Tennessee River Watershed Beautiful Month, visit www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org/ktnrwb-month.

River Group Seeks Nominations for Prestigious Ripple Effect Awards Presented by Yamaha Rightwaters™

Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful (KTNRB) is currently seeking applications for the 3rd annual Tennessee River Ripple Effect Awards presented by Yamaha Rightwaters™. The awards will recognize winners of nine categories in three regions that touch Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Kentucky, Georgia, Virginia, and North Carolina.

“Last year, we introduced our professionally-produced video award presentation, and have found telling the stories to be both enlightening and inspiring to a large audience within the seven-state Tennessee River watershed,” said Kathleen Gibi, Executive Director for KTNRB. “We’re proud to praise those who are making a difference for our river system, and we’re grateful to Yamaha Rightwaters™ for continuing this important recognition.”

The goal of the awards is to inspire new river champions in sharing success stories, thus the concept behind the ‘Ripple Effect’ title. Each award category will be presented to a recipient within the following regions:

Each award category will be presented in the following Tennessee River watershed regions:

·       West : West of I-65
·       Middle: East of I-65 and west of I-75
·       East: East of I-75

The 2020 Ripple Effect Award categories include:

·       Conservation
·       Adopt a River Mile / Storm Drain
·       Marina
·       Standout Youth
·       Business
·       Government Department / Law Enforcement Agency
·       Keep America Beautiful Affiliate
·       Elected Official
·       Beacon (ongoing leadership)

Each winner will receive a glass trophy that resembles a rippling river. The awards are sponsored by Yamaha Rightwaters™, a sustainability initiative of the international watercraft company, Yamaha.

"Yamaha Rightwaters is fighting to protect our most precious and essential natural resource – water,” said Martin Peters Yamaha Marine Division Manager, Government Relations. “It embodies all of Yamaha's conservation initiatives, and becomes a platform for many plans the company has in store to improve our water resources.

“We are proud to partner with Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful in their efforts to preserve and protect this amazing resource so that future generations can continue to enjoy the Tennessee River for decades to come."

The Ripple Effect Awards coincide with ‘Keep the Tennessee River Watershed Beautiful Month,’ which is celebrated in October along with multi-state river cleanups and proclamations by governors and mayors within the river’s watershed.

ALL NOMINATIONS ARE DUE BY FRIDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2021.

Nomination forms may be submitted at www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org/awards.

To view the full presentation of the 2020 Ripple Effect Awards presented by Yamaha Rightwaters™, visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4TV657H8o28.  

Plastic Free Month: YETI Becomes Title Sponsor of River Group’s Goal to Remove 125,000 lbs. of Trash in 2021

A group of volunteers collect litter in a cove on the Tennessee River at a cleanup held on April 9, 2021 in Rogersville, Ala.

27,272 lbs. That’s how many pounds of throwaway drink containers that Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful estimates its volunteers have removed in 2021 alone—all of which could have been spared if reusable products such as those made by YETI had been used instead.

The 26-foot Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful boat gets towed out of the water with a boatload of trash that volunteers collected at a cleanup on June 26, 2021 on the Tennessee River in Soddy Daisy, Tenn.

As Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful (KTNRB) hits its first-time milestone of 80,000 lbs. of trash removed from the Tennessee River watershed within a year, YETI has committed $10,000 to become the title sponsor of the organization’s goal to remove 125,000 lbs. of trash in 2021.

“The litter pulled at our river cleanups is a visual call to make a change in how we as Americans consume our beverages,” said Kathleen Gibi, KTNRB Executive Director. “We’re so proud for our river cleanups to be lined up with our new partners at YETI, who offer instant solutions to some of the most prevalent litter we encounter.”

Originally, KTNRB’s goal was to remove 100,000 lbs. of trash in 2021, but the new support from YETI is allowing that target to be extended to 125,000 lbs. The announcement comes during ‘Plastic Free Month,’ which is celebrated in July.

Gibi estimates 70 percent of the trash bags that volunteers fill consists of throwaway drink containers, noting that as a very modest estimate. As of their most recent cleanup held on June 26, KTNRB volunteers had removed at total of 1,948 bags of trash in 2021. 

“Waste industry experts promote the practice of ‘reduce, reuse, and recycle’ in that exact order, and reusable products like those offered by YETI happen to hit the first two points of that model,” said Gibi. “It’s small changes in our daily habits that will make the difference.”

At an October 11, 2020 cleanup in Decatur, Ala: A Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful volunteer cleans a cove filled with single-use drink container litter as two turtles (in the forefront) hide in their shells.

Though the Tennessee River is renowned for its beautiful scenery and generates an estimated $12 billion annually in the recreation industry alone, a study released in 2019 by German scientist Dr. Andreas Fath found the Tennessee River to be the most microplastic-polluted river in the world studied to date.

“As a brand that was born on the water, helping to protect waterways and the wild has been an important part of YETI’s mission since 2006,” said Jennifer Silberman, Vice President of ESG at YETI. “We’re proud to support the incredibly important work that the KTNRB team is doing and hope these efforts ensure future generations can continue to appreciate and enjoy the Tennessee River for years to come.”

YETI tags itself as a global designer, retailer, and distributor of innovative outdoor products, helping its customers to eliminate unnecessary waste by designing durable, versatile, and reusable options that replace the need for single-use products. The company has committed to many efforts that help protect the natural environment its customers enjoy.

In 2016, YETI became the official partner of the Kick Plastic Guide & Outfitter Program along with Costa Del Mar and WorldCast Anglers to reduce and eliminate single serve plastic water bottles from outfitting trips and camps.

Volunteers clean shorelines of the Ocoee River, a tributary of the Tennessee River, at a cleanup held on March 1, 2021 in Benton, Tenn.

YETI is also a member of the Plastic Impact Alliance, a group of over 225 outdoor brands committed to making the industry more sustainable, one bottle, one cup at a time. Through this initiative in June 2019, YETI promised to reject single-use plastic bottles at an Outdoor Retailer convention. In the first year of the commitment, YETI served 5,631 people with 1,320 gallons of water, resulting in a conversion of more than 14,000 twelve-ounce plastic bottles saved during the 2019 Outdoor Retailer show.

Now, YETI is supporting and helping to create awareness for Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful’s river cleanup efforts, at which volunteers remove thousands of littered, single-use plastic items from local waterways. Each year, KTNRB hosts dozens of river cleanups within the seven-state Tennessee River watershed, taking volunteers on the organization’s 26-foot aluminum work boat to clean shorelines and coves.

Hosting cleanups since 2016, Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful became the first Keep America Beautiful affiliate in the nation to focus solely on a river. Just last month, the organization hit a lifetime milestone of 250,000 lbs. of trash removed since its formation, thanks to the help of more than 2,000 volunteers.

To learn more about Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful, visit www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org.  

Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful is a 501c3 nonprofit and is the first Keep America Beautiful affiliate in the nation to focus solely on a river. Its mission is to rally communities along the Tennessee River and its tributaries to preserve, improve and protect the river for generations to come. To date, 2,075 volunteers have helped the organization to remove 260,706 lbs. of trash along the 652-mile Tennessee River and its tributaries that reach into seven states.

www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org
Contact: Kathleen Gibi, Executive Director
kathleen@keeptnriverbeautiful.org
865.386.3926

About YETI Holdings, Inc. (“YETI”) (NYSE: YETI): 

Headquartered in Austin, Texas, YETI is a global designer, retailer, and distributor of innovative outdoor products. From coolers and drinkware to backpacks and bags, YETI products are built to meet the unique and varying needs of diverse outdoor pursuits, whether in the remote wilderness, at the beach, or anywhere life takes our customers. By consistently delivering high-performing, exceptional products, we have built a strong following of brand loyalists throughout the world, ranging from serious outdoor enthusiasts to individuals who simply value products of uncompromising quality and design. We have an unwavering commitment to outdoor and recreation communities, and we are relentless in our pursuit of building superior products for people to confidently enjoy life outdoors and beyond. For more information, please visit www.YETI.com.

Volunteers Remove 5,000 lbs. at the ‘Chickamauga Lake Cleanup Weekend Presented by iSustain’

The group of volunteers from the cleanup on Friday, June 25, pose with one of the trash piles they made at three cleanup sites.

A total of 25 volunteers helped to remove 5,000 lbs. of trash over the weekend in Soddy Daisy, Tenn. in a two-part cleanup series that Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful hosted, called ‘Chickamauga Lake Cleanup Weekend presented by iSustain.’

The cleanup held on the evening of Friday, June 25, resulted in 2,104 lbs. removed by 15 volunteers, and the cleanup held on Saturday, June 26, yielded 2,841 lbs. removed by ten volunteers. Items removed included:

Kathleen Gibi, KTNRB Executive Director, gets ready to load Saturday’s trash collection onto the boat trailer so that the trash can then be tossed into a dumpster.

·       132 bags of trash
·       13 tires
·       3.5 steel drums
·       80 square feet of Styrofoam
·       12’ x 12’ fiberglass boat top
·       Computer monitor
·       215 lbs. of carpet
·       55-gallon plastic barrel
·       Two 30-gallon plastic barrels 

“This weekend was a really fun one—a true community effort with tons of energy and excitement, all spurred by iSustain’s ask to hold a cleanup here,” said Kathleen Gibi, KTNRB Executive Director. “It’s great to see local river champions inspiring others in their community to care for this precious river of ours.”

The cleanup series was made possible thanks to a $2,500 sponsorship from iSustain Recycling, a national sustainability services company that processes over 151 million pounds of recyclable products each year. 

Dawn Huber, owner of iSustain, and Mark Huber, Vice President, each joined both cleanups with staff from their company and even family. The couple has since adopted Tennessee River Mile 489 on Chickamauga Lake through KTNRB’s Adopt a River Mile program.

Dawn Huber, owner of iSustain and Mark Huber, VP of Business Development for iSustain, pick up litter on a shoreline of Chickamauga Lake on the Tennessee River.

“What an absolute blast making an impact on recovering trash and waste plastics from our beautiful river, said Mark Huber, Vice President of Business Development for iSustain and KTNRB Board Member. “Our goal shared with KTNRB is to inspire people of all ages to change their behavior to reduce, reuse, and recycle, which ultimately eliminates opportunity for litter.

We are so thankful to be a part of this multi-state effort to preserve our beautiful waterways for now and for future generations.”

The event series was also held in partnership with the Chickamauga Fly, Bait & Casting Club (a participant in KTNRB’s Adopt a River Mile program) and the Soddy Daisy Beautification and Improvement Project. Both partners assisted with local volunteer recruitment and participated in the cleanups.

After each cleanup, the KTNRB boat was filled up with the trash collected by volunteers and then dumped into a 40-yard roll-off dumpster provided by Priority Waste Services of Soddy Daisy. The dumpster was full by the end of the weekend series on Saturday.

For a list of upcoming cleanups with Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful, visit www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org/upcomingcleanups. 

Volunteers from the cleanup on Saturday, June 26, leave behind a trash pile at the first of four sites cleaned that day.

‘Chickamauga Lake Cleanup Weekend Presented by iSustain’ to Take Place June 25-26

The KTNRB boat was filled by volunteers at a Possum Creek cleanup that took place in March 2021. iSustain sponsored the disposal of the trash collected for that cleanup.

Click the logo above to visit the iSustain web site.

Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful (KTNRB) will host a two-part volunteer cleanup series called the ‘Chickamauga Lake Cleanup Weekend presented by iSustain’ next Friday, June 25, and Saturday, June 26.

The cleanup series is made possible thanks to a $2,500 sponsorship from iSustain Recycling, a national sustainability services company that processes over 151 million pounds of recyclable products each year.

“iSustain’s extensive recycling efforts are regularly saving our waterways from literally tons of potential litter each year, and supporting our river cleanups just takes their environmental stewardship to the next level,” said Kathleen Gibi, KTNRB Executive Director. “They’re river champions, for sure, and we’re grateful to team up with them.” 

The cleanups, held on Chickamauga Lake of the Tennessee River in Soddy Daisy, Tennessee, are also held in partnership with the Chickamauga Fly, Bait & Casting Club (a participant in KTNRB’s Adopt a River Mile program) and the Soddy Daisy Beautification Project. Both partners are assisting with local volunteer recruitment for the weekend’s cleanups.

KTNRB will take up to 15 volunteers out on their 26-foot work boat each day to clean a portion of the Tennessee River near Possum Creek. When the cleanups end each day, the trash collected will be hauled out of the water and dumped into a 30-yard roll-off dumpster provided by Priority Waste of Soddy Daisy.

“So exciting to be a part of the KTNRB efforts to educate, create awareness, and make an impact on the litter in our waterways,” said Mark Huber, Vice President of Business Development for iSustain, Inc. and KTNRB board member. “KTNRB is focusing on the source of ocean litter and microplastic contamination, and through outreach and education we can all make a difference on our beautiful waterways here in Tennessee and nationally.” 

Volunteers must register for the event as boat seats are limited. Registration for both events can be found at www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org/chickamauga. 

Yamaha Pro Ish Monroe Joins Forces with Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful, Youth Volunteers and Yamaha Rightwaters™ to Clean Up Nickajack Lake

Nickajack Lake, Tenn. – June 2, 2021 –  Yamaha Pro Angler Ish Monroe teamed up with Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful (KTNRB) and a group of young volunteers on June 1 to clean up Nickajack Lake. Led by KTNRB Executive Director Kathleen Gibi, the group pulled 2,119 pounds of trash from the shoreline near the Shellmound Campground boat ramp in Jasper, Tennessee. 

Pro Angler Ish Monroe, KTNRB AmeriCorps Member Adam Weinzapfel, and volunteer Tyler Thornbury remove a traffic barrier from the water.

“Watching these volunteers take action to make our waterways better is incredibly inspiring,” said Monroe. “I applaud KTNRB’s ongoing efforts to not only care for and protect the beautiful 652-mile Tennessee River, but also for encouraging and teaching the next generation about the importance of environmental stewardship.”

The volunteers, ranging ages from 8 to 33, rode in KTNRB’s 26-foot aluminum work boat, which Yamaha Rightwaters and Anderson Marine helped re-power with a V MAX SHO® 90 outboard in 2020.

Ish Monroe pulling a tire from the river.

“I was honored to spend the day especially with the young volunteers who are making a difference,” said Monroe.

Joining the event was Cash “The Conservation Kid” Daniels, a two-time KTNRB Ripple Effect Award recipient and 11-year-old water quality advocate recognized for his hard work improving and protecting the Tennessee River. 

“We had a river celebrity-studded cleanup with Cash, who inspires everyone with his passion for water quality, and Ish and the Yamaha Rightwaters team, who understand the importance of acting now so that future generations can also enjoy the river,” said Kathleen Gibi, KTNRB Executive Director. “Working together, we hope to inspire residents of the river communities to take care of this natural treasure.” 

Yamaha Rightwaters began its support of Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful after meetings during the 2019 Bassmaster Classic® in Knoxville, Tenn. Yamaha Rightwaters also sponsors KTNRB’s Ripple Effect Awards.

For more information about Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful or to volunteer, please visit keeptnriverbeautiful.org.

Left to right: KTNRB Executive Director Kathleen Gibi, Cash “The Conservation Kid” Daniels, and Professional Angler Ish Monroe.

Yamaha Rightwaters™ is a national sustainability program that encompasses all of Yamaha Marine’s conservation and water quality efforts. Program initiatives include habitat restoration, support for scientific research, mitigation of invasive species, the reduction of marine debris and environmental stewardship education. Yamaha Rightwaters reinforces Yamaha’s long-standing history of natural resource conservation, support of sustainable recreational fishing and water resources and Angler Code of Ethics, which requires pro anglers to adhere to principles of stewardship for all marine resources.

Yamaha Marine products are marketed throughout the United States and around the world. Yamaha U.S. Marine Business Unit, based in Kennesaw, Ga., supports its 2,400 U.S. dealers and boat builders with marketing, training and parts for Yamaha’s full line of products and strives to be the industry leader in reliability, technology and customer service. Yamaha Marine is the only outboard brand to have earned NMMA®’s C.S.I. Customer Satisfaction Index award every year since its inception.

Every Tennessee State Park-Owned Campground, Marina Commits to Cigarette Recycling Program, Litter Prevention

Cedars of Lebanon Park Manager Jeff Buchanon poses with one of the cigarette receptacles provided by Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful in Middle Tenn.

Tennessee State Parks have taken a step to help prevent cigarette litter—and ultimately fire hazards—all while making a commitment for 32 campgrounds and three marinas to recycle the plastic from every cigarette butt collected.

Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful is providing Tennessee State Parks with 109 cigarette receptacles that feature art wraps with information about the consequences of cigarette litter in our waterways. The collected cigarette butts will then be shipped to a company called TerraCycle, who covers the shipping costs and recycles the plastic microfibers found in cigarette filters into new plastic items, such as outdoor furniture.

“To have 35 Tennessee State Park facilities lead in such an elaborate river stewardship effort is truly going to make an impact for the waterways in Tennessee,” said Kathleen Gibi, Executive Director for Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful (KTNRB). “Littered cigarettes are surprisingly prolific and harmful for our waterways, so the state parks’ commitment is a great step in protecting the Tennessee River and its tributaries for generations to come.” 

A KTNRB receptacle installed at Norris Dam State Park in East Tenn.

In January 2019, CNN reported cigarette filters, which contain tightly compacted plastic fibers, to be the No. 1 plastic pollutant in the world. In Februay 2019, a German scientist named Dr. Andreas Fath reported a study that found the Tennessee River to have the highest levels of microplastics in any river in the world studied to date. 

Furthermore, littered cigarettes that are inevitably washed into waterways have been known to contain toxins with the potential to kill aquatic life within two gallons of surrounding water. 

In a preliminary count conducted by state park staff, the sites of these new receptacles were found to have 1,982 cigarette butts littered on the ground, just waiting to be washed into our waterways with the next rain. The hope is that, with this new infrastructure now available, visitors who smoke in state parks will properly dispose of their cigarettes.

Tennessee State Parks have marinas, boat launches, boat rentals, and guided boat tours on lakes, reservoirs, rivers, and streams throughout the state. More than 30 Tennessee State Parks offer camping opportunities. 

“We are pleased to join Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful in such a worthy effort,” Jim Bryson, deputy commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), said. “The river is an important natural resource for our state, and Tennessee State Parks are committed to help keep it that way.”

Ranger Aaron Schapley with a KTNRB cigarette receptacle at Nathan Bedford Forrest State Park in West Tenn.

This particular project with Tennessee State Parks and the Tennessee State Parks Conservancy was largely made possible through a $10,000 Cigarette Litter Prevention Program (CLPP) Grant from Keep America Beautiful® (KAB). In fact, the national organization has provided KTNRB with 500 receptacles that have been installed within the seven states of the Tennessee River watershed over the last two years. The receptacles are managed by marinas, campgrounds, and other tourism facilities.

According to Keep America Beautiful, communities implementing the CLPP have consistently cut cigarette butt litter by 50 percent over the past decade. 

“The Cigarette Litter Prevention Program grants empower communities to help mitigate the economic, environmental, and quality-of-life impact of cigarette littering,” said Jerred Jones, program director for Keep America Beautiful’s CLPP.

Including the art wrap, each receptacle is valued around $115. KTNRB started the art-wrapped cigarette receptacles project while working with the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Tennessee Valley Clean Marina Program. 

In 2019, TVA funding as well as a special litter grant from the Tennessee Department of Transportation covered the cost of the design and printing of the initial art wraps. TVA then connected KTNRB with the 200+ marinas, campgrounds, and resorts along the Tennessee River watershed. 

Two grants and two years later, KTNRB’s program has only grown since then. The grant from KAB will also fund the distribution of 90 additional receptacles for new participating sites. Marinas, campgrounds and other destinations located within the Tennessee River watershed may submit requests for the free cigarette waste receptacles at www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org/cigarettelitter. 

The Tennessee State Park facilities participating in the new program include:

T.O. Fuller
Pather Creek
Paris Landing
Reelfoot 
Nathan Bedford"
Fort Pillow
Big Ridge
David Crockett Birthplace
Hiwassee 
Cove Lake
Cedars of Lebanon
Bledsoe Creek
David Crockett
Tims Ford
Meeman Shelby'
Standing Stone
Norris Dam
Indian Mountain
Chickasaw
Pickwick Landing
Roan Mountain
Big Hill Pond
Warriors Path
Cumberland Mountain
Edgar Evins
Fall Creek Falls
Harrison Bay
Henry Horton
Montgomery Bell
Mousetail Landing
Natchez Trace
Old Stone Fort
Pickett
Rock Island
South Cumberland

“I knew we couldn’t pass up this opportunity based on my experience with Keep America Beautiful and Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful,” said Kelly Tipler, Executive Director of Tennessee State Parks Conservancy. “Both organization’s commitment to maintaining and preserving natural resources perfectly aligns with our mission, and we’re excited to have over 30 Tennessee State Parks participate in this program.”

For information on KTNRB’s ongoing efforts to preserve, improve and protect the river, visit www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org. 

Producing Results: Storm Drains and Grocery Stores

WRITTEN BY: ADAM WEINZAPFEL,
KTNRB AMERICORPS MEMBER

For most of us, heading to the grocery store is a weekly routine. It’s the most essential business you visit in your day-to-day life. Did you know that your weekly stops could be an excellent opportunity to make a difference for your community? 

            Many grocery store parking lots are large, paved areas that allow stormwater to pass over quickly, picking up litter as it goes. The litter travels with the water to where the engineering of the parking lot is designed to take water: the storm drains. 

            Like the storm drains you see in your neighborhoods or on the street, the drains at your local grocery likely can pick up trash, maybe even more so due to the high traffic area of grocery store parking lots. Why not show a little support and take 10 minutes out of your shopping run to clean a drain? It’s quick and easy, and most grocery stores already have bins to dispose of any waste you collect before heading in to shop.

            If this sounds like a great opportunity to you, we’d love to help you out! If you adopt your local grocery’s storm drains at https://www.keeptnriverbeautiful.org/stormdrain, we’ll send you cleaning supplies and guidelines on how to safely clean your storm drain to get you started. This is a great opportunity to turn a weekly run into something that makes a difference.

            Litter may seem like an impossibly large task to take on, but cleaning even one storm drain can reduce not only your impact, but your entire community’s impact on our waterways as well.

Earth Day Weekend Wrap Up: Local Business Donates $2,000 for River Cleanup Work; Volunteers Remove 7,373 Lbs. of Trash from the Tennessee River

Staff from the Chemours chemical plant point to the camper top that their company’s $2,000 donation helped KTNRB to purchase after participating in a river cleanup where they removed over 3,000 lbs. of trash.

Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful (KTNRB) celebrated Earth Day river cleanups with communities in Clifton, Tenn. and New Johnsonville, Tenn. where volunteers from a high school, a local chemical plant, and even vacationers removed 7,373 lbs. of trash from Kentucky Lake of the Tennessee River. 

The nonprofit also showcased their new camper top for their river cleanup truck that was purchased with a $2,000 donation from the Chemours chemical plant in Humphreys County, Tenn. 

EARTH DAY WITH FRANK HUGHES HIGH SCHOOL | CLIFTON, TN

KTNRB hosted three river cleanups to celebrate Earth Day last week, kicking off with an Earth Day cleanup partnered with the Wayne County Beautification Project in Clifton, Tenn. with students from Frank Hughes High School. The students rode in KTNRB’s 26-foot work boat to Jeter Towhead Island, where a marina had been stranded after a major flood that occurred in 2019.

The students collected 2,814 lbs. of trash, including 196 square feet of Styrofoam that had been dislodged from the marina, a 500-pound tractor tire, two refrigerators, and much more.

“These impressive kids had the best attitude, showed a hard work ethic during the entire cleanup, and used teamwork to get the job done—all things that give hope for our future,” said Kathleen Gibi, Executive Director for Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful. “They made it a very special Earth Day.” 

Wayne County hauled off all of the trash removed and Clifton Marina and RV Park hosted the launch site for the event. Gibi said it was Lindsay Ross of the Wayne County Beautification Project who reached out to make this event happen and did much of the local organizing.

“These students, along with their teacher, Thomas Fish, showed enthusiasm and passion regarding keeping litter and debris out of the Tennessee River,” said Lindsay Ross, Project Manager for the Wayne County Beautification Project. “They were taught skills and knowledge that will help them become environmental stewards and we thank Kathleen and her team for making this awesome educational opportunity come to fruition for these students and for Wayne County Tennessee.” 

CHEMOURS GIVES DONATION, STAFF VOLUNTEER AT CLEANUP | NEW JOHNSONVILLE, TN

On Friday, April 23, nine volunteers from the Chemours chemical plant located on the Tennessee River helped to remove 3,161 lbs. of trash at a cleanup partnered with New Johnsonville State Historic Park. The weight pulled included 114 bags of trash, 223 lbs. of random plastic, 12 tires, and even two mannequin heads!

“This was the second cleanup that the Chemours team has participated in on Kentucky Lake, and it’s so crucial for businesses like Chemours to set such an example of river stewardship,” said Gibi.

When the cleanup was finished, the trash-filled boat was loaded onto KTNRB’s trailer and the Chemours employees posed with the boat and truck, pointing to the camper top that their company had made possible through a $2,000 donation.

Gibi said that the camper top provides essentially a mobile office and storage space that makes their river cleanups even more effective.

"We are thankful for the opportunity to help make the riverbanks and Kentucky Lake a cleaner place for everyone to enjoy," said Chemours Johnsonville Plant Manager Clement Hilton. "Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful provides a great resource to people and organizations all along the Tennessee River, and Chemours is happy to help make their mobile efforts more productive with the donation for a camper top.”

CLEANUP WITH VACATIONERS, RETIRED COUNTY COMMISSIONER |
NEW JOHNSONVILLE, TN

The weekend wrapped up on a rainy Saturday, April 24, held once again in collaboration with New Johnsonville State Historic Park. Even through the rains, three women who were vacationing on a girls trip weekend, and an 82 year old retired County Commissioner, came out to clean shorelines on Kentucky Lake of the Tennessee River.

The cleanup was cut short, but not before the volunteers removed 1,398 lbs., including 39 bags of trash, three tires, a kids’ kitchenette set, a boat seat, a big wheel, and more.

“It’s always inspiring to see volunteers come out to clean our river, but to come out in the rain while on vacation or at 82 years old takes it to another level!” Gibi said. “There’s hope for our waterways because of people like them.”

Both cleanups in New Johnsonville were launched from Pebble Isle Marina and Humphreys County Sanitation donated a roll-off dumpster service to haul away all of the trash collected. 

“Johnsonville State Historic Park’s mission is to Preserve, Protect and Share the stories of Johnsonville, Tenn.,” said Ranger Sinz. “Caring for this area of the Tennessee River is important for the preservation and protection of the natural resources within the park, as well as Humphreys County, and we are so grateful for the dedicated community volunteers and local partners such as Chemours for their efforts to help improve our local environment.”

This weekend marked the sixth cleanup that KTNRB has hosted in collaboration with Johnsonville State Historic Park the first one held in October 2020. To date, volunteers have removed 18,578 lbs. of trash from the area in those six cleanups. Gibi said they’ve been able to remove so much from one area because of passionate local partners from the region, particularly the rangers at the state park.

“Ranger Noah Sinz in particular has simply been a make-it-happen kind of partner and without his help, these cleanups wouldn’t have come close to being so successful,” said Gibi. “We’re always on the lookout for more river champions like him throughout the Tennessee River watershed because they’re true changemakers.”

To learn more about KTNRB or register for a cleanup, visit www.KeepTNRIverBeautiful.org.

22,172 Lbs. of Trash Removed in Tennessee River Grand Slam Cleanup Series

Volunteers remove trash from one of three coves they cleaned on Wheeler Lake of the Tennessee River in Joe Wheeler State Park in Rogersville, AL.

Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful’s ‘Tennessee River Grand Slam Cleanup Series’ wrapped up this past weekend with an additional 6,460 lbs. of trash removed at two North Alabama cleanups.

On Friday, April 9, a total of eight volunteers on Wheeler Lake removed 3,345 lbs. of trash in Joe Wheeler State Park and nine volunteers removed 3,115 lbs. in Muscle Shoals, AL on Saturday, April 10, from Wilson Lake.

Despite having to relocate a cleanup last minute to Wheeler Lake due to flood conditions on the intended Pickwick Lake, the numbers were still quite impressive. The volunteers at the two cleanups in Alabama removed: 

Volunteers on Fort Loudoun Lake in Knoxville, Tenn. stand with a port-a-john they removed from shallow waters.

·       218 bags of trash
·       19 tires
·       43 feet of barge line
·       369 lbs. of random plastic
·       48 square feet of Styrofoam
·       10 lbs. of scrap metal
·       4.5 55-gallon barrels
·       6 trash cans
·       2 toilet seats
·       1 mini fridge
·       1 television set

“These two cleanups both suffered location and scheduling adjustments due to weather, but the results are a testament to what can be accomplished when volunteers are committed to making their community a better place,” said Kathleen Gibi, Executive Director for Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful. “By working with us through the challenges, our volunteers and our partners at Living Lands & Waters made a three ton difference for the Tennessee River, which is something to be really proud of.”

Gibi said that the City of Florence, Lauderdale County, and Joe Wheeler State Park all stepped up to roll with the last-minute changes needed to work around storms at each site, each offering local sponsorships and services for the cleanup to be possible.

In all, the trash removed by 75 volunteers in the Grand Slam Cleanup Series totaled at over 11 tons: 

2021 GRAND SLAM CLEANUP SERIES TOTALS

March 20          Roane County, TN                   Watts Bar Lake                          9,426 lbs. removed
March 21          Knoxville/Louisville, TN          Fort Loudoun Lake                  6,286 lbs. removed
April 9              Rogersville, AL                          Wheeler Lake                            3,345 lbs. removed
April 10            The Shoals, AL                           Wilson Lake                               3,115 lbs. removed
                                                                                                                         22,172 lbs. removed

Volunteers in The Shoals, AL post with one of their trash piles collected on Wilson Lake of the Tennessee River.

This cleanup series now puts Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful (KTNRB) more than half-way in their ambitious goal of removing 100,000 lbs. of trash from the Tennessee River watershed this year. To date, more than 200 volunteers have removed 56,698 lbs. of trash at KTNRB cleanups in 2021.

The Grand Slam Cleanup Series has become an annual tradition for Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful, hosting cleanups in partnership with national nonprofit, Living Lands & Waters (LL&W), who brings five 30-foot work boats to supplement KTNRB’s boat. The series cleanups are held on four different lakes of the Tennessee River.

“The cleanup weekend just held in Alabama was filled with sunshine, laughter, and a lot of trash!” said Dan Breidenstein of Living Lands & Waters, who also serves as Board Vice President for KTNRB. “It was awesome to meet and work alongside all the hardworking volunteers that came out to make such a positive impact on their community and the river.”

The cleanup series has national, state, and regional sponsors to make the cleanups possible. Series sponsors include the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), Tennessee Dept. of Transportation (TDOT), Keep Tennessee Beautiful (KTnB), and Keep America Beautiful (KAB). Representatives from each sponsor group attended at least one event in the Grand Slam Cleanup Series themselves.

This Tennessee River Grand Slam Cleanup is part of a nationwide effort known as the Great American Cleanup®, a signature program of national nonprofit Keep America Beautiful®. Through this far-reaching effort, which takes place from March 20 through June 20, the Keep America Beautiful national network of nearly 700 community-based affiliates host over 15,000 events and activities, engaging more than 500,000 volunteers and participants.

 “The Grand Slam Cleanup Series is a glimpse at the momentum and energy building around this river,” said Gibi. “With big and small efforts, we can make a huge, collective impact for our precious Tennessee River, as demonstrated by our volunteers over the past month.”

To learn about upcoming Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful cleanups, visit www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org.

Volunteers on Watts Bar Lake in Roane County, Tenn. stand with one of the many trash piles they collected.

Take a Neighborhood Stroll; Clean a Storm Drain

WRITTEN BY: ADAM WEINZAPFEL,
KTNRB AMERICORPS MEMBER

The weather is warming up; the sun is shining longer; and the wildlife is out and about. As you (and your family) enjoy a walk to take in the blossoming surroundings, why not help protect their habitats by bringing a bag to pick up litter that gets caught in storm drains?

If left unchecked, this trash will eventually find its way into the rivers. However, if you and your family make a point to take action, the sight of trash is no longer a disappointment—it’s an opportunity. You get to turn your evening into a small-scale cleanup, leaving your community’s image looking cleaner and its surrounding environment a little healthier.

Because of the nature of stormwater, trash tends to collect in the local infrastructure that guides it, like drainage ditches, culverts and storm drains. While ditches and culverts really aren’t the easiest to reach on a casual walk with the family, storm drains are by far the easiest to both see and access. In fact, there’s a good chance that you’re already familiar with a problem storm drain in your neighborhood.

If you think this opportunity sounds interesting, Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful has a program designed to get you started. 

As part of our Adopt a Storm Drain program, we will send you cleaning supplies and guidelines to help support your efforts while you do monthly cleanups and report your trash collected back to us. Remember that these cleanups really are just as simple as taking a trash bag with you when you go for a walk, and the online reports are just as simple.

If there are storm drains in your neighborhood, then you have the chance to make a difference.  Why not sign up? Just go to https://www.keeptnriverbeautiful.org/stormdrain.

We’ll get a care package shipped out to you, and you’ll get to turn your evening stroll into quick and easy community service.

Blog: The Conservation Kid Takes Adopting the Tennessee River to Heart

Cash Daniels and his younger brother, Cole, cleanup litter on Nickajack Lake of the Tennessee River.

WRITTEN BY: ADAM WEINZAPFEL,
KTNRB AMERICORPS MEMBER

Cash has participated in Keep the Tennessee River Watershed Beautiful Month in many ways, including obtaining proclamations from the mayors of Chattanooga and Cleveland, Tenn.

Our Adopt a River Mile Program has been booming in 2021, with over 40 new adoptees in the past 3 months, more and more partners are stepping up to take care of the Tennessee River and its many tributaries. Every partner, both long-established and recent, deeply care for the river and work hard for their community to make it a cleaner place. 

One adoptee, Cash “The Conservation Kid” Daniels, is no exception. Cash is our youngest partner at only 11 years old, but in that time as done literal tons of good. His work has led him to be a two-time recipient of our Ripple Effect Awards presented by Yamaha Rightwaters.  

We wanted to shine a light on this inspiring young man, so we sat down for a short interview with him to ask a few questions, and here’s what he had to say:

So Cash, how old were you when you started cleanups?

Cash: I was eight when I got started doing cleanups, and I adopted my river mile when I was nine.

Eight years old is pretty young, so why did you decide to start at that age?

 Cash: I learned that rivers are the leading cause of pollution in our oceans, and that made me want to do river cleanups. I wanted to do what I could to stop it.

That’s a big goal to take on, how has that experience been so far?

Cash: Cleaning is fun and hard. There’s a lot that goes into the cleanups. I know that the work is hard, but I am helping wildlife, and that’s what matters to me.

Cash Daniels posing with a doll head he found at KTNRB’s Dayton, TN Cleanup.

You’ve done a lot of cleanups so far. What’s the weirdest thing you pulled out?

Cash: I know the creepiest thing I pulled out was this really creepy baby doll head! But there have been other things, like syringes and toy grenades that were also pretty creepy.

 Sounds like you’ve found some unsettling things! 

Cash: Yeah, you find a lot of things like that. But you also find a lot of plastic. 

I imagine there are a lot of people who dislike all that plastic. What do you have to say to people who don’t like plastic and are looking to adopt, or have recently adopted?

Cash: I’d tell them that adopting a river mile is simple, and a huge help to the rivers. I’ve done a lot of cleanups and have seen changes on my river mile. There’s been a big difference. I also think that adopting is great for families. The more help the better!

 I bet so. Your family has obviously been a big help for you. Well thank you for sitting down and letting me ask a few questions.

Cash: Thank you for having me.

Cash and his brother, Cole, posing with trash from his cleanup at newly adopted Mile 486.

Since this interview, Cash has gone on to do more for the Tennessee River, including adopting a second river mile, already pulling 584 lbs. of trash, including 8 bags of trash, 300 lbs of random plastic, and 2 propane tanks at the first cleanup.

If you want to see all of the work Cash has been doing the past few years, follow him on his Instagram, @theconservationkid. There, he not only shares his cleanups, but showcases his wildlife encounters, tells the updates in his monofilament fishing line recycling program that he manages, works with other young conservationists and organizations, and provides ways that you can be more of a conservationist in your day to day life. 

We can’t thank him enough for not only the interview, but for everything he has done for our rivers, oceans, and wildlife in these past 3+ years.

15,700 lbs. of Trash Removed in First Weekend of Tennessee River Grand Slam Cleanup Series

Four of the six boats of volunteers finish up the first cove of the day on Thief’s Neck Island, the largest island on the Tennessee River, during the Roane County Cleanup.

Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful’s ‘Tennessee River Grand Slam Cleanup Series’ kicked off this past weekend with a 15,700-pound wallop at two cleanups held in East Tennessee.

On Saturday, March 20, a total of 41 volunteers in Roane County removed 9,426 lbs. of trash from Watts Bar Lake and 17 volunteers removed 6,286 lbs. in Knoxville/Louisville on Sunday, March 21, from Fort Loudoun Lake. The weight included:

Roane County Cleanup                     Knoxville & Louisville, Tenn. Cleanup
248 bags of trash                                               154 bags of trash
45 tires                                                               32 tires
267 lbs. random plastic                                    285 lbs. random plastic
34 lbs. scrap metal                                            360 lbs. scrap metal
8 buckets                                                          water heater   
Abandoned boat (775 lbs.)                              port-a-john
Concrete, metal, foam dock (1,100 lbs.)       stove
2 tube televisions                                               tube television
Car/boat battery                                               washing Machine
2 steel 55-gallon drums                                   HVAC unit                    

Litter collection on Watts Bar Lake of the Tennessee River during the Roane County cleanup.

“We are blown away by the ever-increasing enthusiasm and momentum around river cleanup efforts in diverse communities in the Tennessee River watershed,” said Kathleen Gibi, Executive Director for Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful (KTNRB). “The energy is seen in the numbers, like the phenomenal achievements our volunteers made this weekend.”

The Grand Slam Cleanup Series has become an annual tradition for Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful, hosting cleanups in partnership with national nonprofit, Living Lands & Waters (LL&W), who brings five 30-foot work boats to supplement KTNRB’s boat. The series cleanups are held in four cities within three of the four states touched by the Tennessee River. Two cleanups remain in this year’s series.

2021 GRAND SLAM CLEANUP SERIES SCHEDULE

March 20         Roane County, TN                     Watts Bar Lake                          9,426 lbs. removed
March 21          Knoxville/Louisville, TN             Fort Loudoun Lake                  6,286 lbs. removed
April 9               Iuka, MS/Hardin County,TN     Pickwick Lake                            Register Here   
April 10             The Shoals, AL                           Wilson Lake                               Register Here

Gibi attributes the first two events’ successes to solid partnerships from all levels. 

Volunteers celebrate filling up a boat on Fort Loudoun Lake of the Tennessee River during the Knoxville/Louisville, TN cleanup.

The national nonprofit, Living Lands & Waters, brings their five 30-foot work boats and crew to supplement KTNRB’s boat, merging into a small river cleanup fleet for each event in the Grand Slam Cleanup Series.

The cleanup series has national, state, and regional sponsors to make the cleanups possible. Series sponsors include the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), Tennessee Dept. of Transportation (TDOT), Keep Tennessee Beautiful (KTnB), and Keep America Beautiful (KAB). Representatives from each sponsor group have attended an event along the Tennessee River to clean up litter on site themselves.

Tennessee Aquatic Weed Removal, a new, local business, removes a piece of an abandoned boat.

Help has come from the local level, as well. For the Roane County cleanup, City of Kingston City Manager, David Bolling, and City of Rockwood City Administrator, Becky Ruppe, were instrumental in recruiting volunteers and lining up Roane County Solid Waste to donate dumpster and tire recycling services. The cleanup in Knoxville and Louisville, Tenn. was supported by Knox County Solid Waste, who donated dumpster and tire recycling services. Ijams Nature Center also supported Sunday’s event by bringing their work boat.

A new, local business made a significant contribution to the Roane County cleanup. Tennessee Aquatic Weed Removal owner, Bryan Bortle, brought his customized boat equipped with heavy machinery to remove an abandoned boat and 1,100-pound piece of dock comprised of concrete, metal, and Styrofoam.

KTNRB also worked with local KTnB and KAB current and aspiring affiliates such as Keep Knoxville Beautiful, Keep Blount Beautiful, Keep Roane Litter Free, Kingston Beautification Project, and Rockwood Beautification Project to spread the word about the cleanups. 

KTNRB Executive Director, Kathleen Gibi

Another partner in the cleanup series is the Tennessee RiverLine, a regional economic development, public health and environmental stewardship initiative supported by UT Knoxville and TVA. The Tennessee RiverLine has recently launched a prestigious Tennessee RiverTowns Program encouraging municipalities to celebrate, protect, and ultimately invest in their city, county or town’s relationship with the river. Every destination visited by the 2021 Tennessee River Grand Slam Cleanup Series is officially enrolled in the Tennessee RiverTowns Program.

“Ultimately, this river is why our cities and towns are here; it contributes to our food and water, our economy, our culture, and so much of our everyday lives,” said Gibi. “So many energized partners coming together to protect and beautify the Tennessee River is a win for our communities, and we see it as a sign that there are better days to come for this river system.”

Volunteers pulled a full port-a-john that was partially buried in shallow water at the Knoxville/ Louisville, TN Cleanup on Sunday.

This Tennessee River Grand Slam Cleanup is part of a nationwide effort known as the Great American Cleanup®, a signature program of national nonprofit Keep America Beautiful®. Through this far-reaching effort, which takes place from March 20 through June 20, the Keep America Beautiful national network of nearly 700 community-based affiliates host over 15,000 events and activities, engaging more than 500,000 volunteers and participants. 

To register for a Tennessee River Grand Slam Cleanup, visit www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org.

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Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful is the first Keep America Beautiful affiliate in the nation to focus solely on a river. They aim to rally communities along the Tennessee River and its tributaries to preserve, improve and protect the river for generations to come. To date, 1,800 volunteers have helped the organization to remove 215,000 lbs. of trash along the 652-mile Tennessee River and its tributaries.

KTNRB AmeriCorps Member, Adam Weinzapfel, stands next to the completely filled dumpster after the Roane County, Tenn. cleanup. Considering Adam is 6’3”, you can get a visual of what 10,000 lbs. of trash looks like!

Volunteers Remove Over 15,000 lbs. (7.5 tons) of Trash from four Rivers in 'Cherokee National Forest River Cleanup Series'

One of the volunteer groups from the Tellico Lake cleanup held on Feb. 20 stand with a pile of trash they collected.

A collective 51 volunteers removed 15,355 lbs. of trash from four different rivers throughout the month of February in Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful’s first Cherokee National Forest River Cleanup Series presented by Volkswagen. 

Volunteers removed enough trash in this cleanup series to be equal to a herd of 21 bull elk, weighing up to 730 lbs. each and is the largest animal that can be spotted in the Cherokee National Forest.

For perspective, the total weight of litter removed is equivalent to 21 bull elk, which can reach up to 730 lbs. and is the largest animal that can be spotted within the Cherokee National Forest. So, it could be said that the volunteers in this cleanup series removed enough trash from the rivers to be comparable to the weight of a herd of elk!

The cleanup series was largely made possible by funding received through the Volkswagen Community Grant Program by Volkswagen of America, Inc., administered by The Conservation Fund. 

“Everyone involved can button this project up knowing that we literally made tons of a difference for the Cherokee National Forest, the Tennessee River watershed, and the communities that they impact,” said Kathleen Gibi, Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful (KTNRB) Executive Director. “From the diverse, stunning beauty we witnessed at each lake, to the passionate effort of our volunteers who removed an impressive amount of litter, to the incredible support from our sponsors and local partners, this series has been an unforgettable, positive experience.”  

KTNRB hosted river cleanups at four sites throughout the month of February, collaborating with local Keep America Beautiful affiliates and local governments:

CHEROKEE NATIONAL FOREST RIVER CLEANUP SERIES RESULTS

Feb. 6      Watauga Lake of the Watauga River          Elizabethton, TN          3,202 lbs.
Feb. 13      South Holston Lake of the Holston River   Abingdon, VA             5,294 lbs.
Feb. 20      Tellico Lake of the Tellico River                 Vonore, TN                  4,852 lbs.
Feb. 27      Parksville Lake of the Ocoee River             Benton, TN                  2,007 lbs.

                                                                                                                         15,355 lbs.

The 51 volunteers had other harrowing statistics from their efforts, including a total of 318 bags of trash, 148 tires, 1,433 lbs. of Styrofoam, 215 lbs. of random plastic, and 303 lbs. of scrap metal.

Volunteers at the cleanup held on South Holston Lake on Feb. 13 removed 114 tires (most were set up years ago as fish attractors) and 37 bags of trash, among other things.

The grant also allowed KTNRB to purchase equipment to support the use of their 5,000-pound, 25-foot work boat as well as an AmeriCorps position through a local East Tennessee chapter, CAC AmeriCorps.

Volunteers with a trash pile collected at a cleanup held on Watauga Lake on Feb. 6.

“This grant will continue to give back well past this river cleanup series now that our organization’s empowered with support equipment so that we can easily host a cleanup and with additional staffing,” said Gibi. “We are so grateful to Volkswagen of America, Inc. and to The Conservation Fund for helping to make all of this possible.”

Gibi said the organization was just hoping to meet the record it had set in 2019 with over 48,000 lbs. of trash removed. By the time 2020 came to a close, the organization had worked with over 300 volunteers who removed more than 61,000 lbs. of litter from the Tennessee River and its tributaries.

“It’s a real testimony to the difference private investments from companies like Volkswagen can make for our community,” said Gibi. “This year, we’ve got our sights set on a goal to remove 100,000 lbs. of trash from our waterways, and we’re already approaching 30,000 lbs. for the year after this series.”

Gibi said that the litter collected in 2020 was a 22% increase from their previous 2019 record that they set the year they first put their work boat in the water. Since the organization formed in 2016, KTNRB has rallied 1,750 volunteers to remove approximately 198,000 lbs. of trash.

“It’s amazing to see what over 15,000 pound of trash looks like, but it’s even more fantastic to see the riverbanks clean and litter free,” said Katie Allen, Director of The Conservation Fund's Conservation Leadership Network. “The efforts of Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful and all of its volunteers during the cleanup series have been outstanding, and they will benefit wildlife, water quality, and recreational experiences well into the future.”  

Staff from Volkswagen, Inc. volunteered at the Parksville Lake Cleanup held on Feb. 27.

Other supporting sponsors of the cleanup series included the Tennessee Valley Authority, the Tennessee Department of Transportation, Keep America Beautiful, and Keep Tennessee Beautiful.

KTNRB plans to host the second Cherokee National Forest River Cleanup Series in 2022. They are also working on plans to reschedule a second cleanup on the Ocoee River that they had to cancel in February due to weather.  

For more information about KTNRB’s schedule, please visit www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org/upcomingcleanups.

A full boat after the cleanup at Watauga Lake on Feb. 6.

With a Remarkable 40+ River Miles Adopted in Two Months, KTNRB Seeks Program Title Sponsor to Continue Momentum

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:

1. To become a title sponsor for KTNRB’s Adopt a River Mile program:
   Call 865-386-3926 or e-mail Kathleen@KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org. 

2. To adopt a river mile within the Tennessee River system: www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org/adopt 

3. To make a donation to Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful:
   www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org/donate.

‘Cherokee National Forest River Cleanup Series’ to Take Place on Four Rivers Thanks to a Grant from Volkswagen, The Conservation Fund

Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful will host a month of river cleanups on four rivers within the Cherokee National Forest, all of which are tributaries of the Tennessee River. The cleanup series will kick off on Saturday, Feb. 6, on Watauga Lake and will continue every weekend in February as the series makes its way to the final destination on the Ocoee River near Chattanooga, Tenn. on Feb. 27.

The cleanup series is largely made possible by funding received through the Volkswagen Community Grant Program by Volkswagen of America, Inc., administered by The Conservation Fund. 

“It’s always great when you have a company come in and create jobs by opening a plant, but it’s a real win if that company seeks out ways to give back to your community the way that Volkswagen has,” said Kathleen Gibi, Executive Director for Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful (KTNRB).

The grant allowed KTNRB to purchase equipment to support the use of their 5,000-pound, 25-foot work boat as well as an AmeriCorps position through a local East Tennessee chapter, CAC AmeriCorps.

“This grant will continue to give back well past this river cleanup series thanks to empowering our organization with support equipment so that we can freely host a cleanup at any time and now with additional staffing,” said Gibi. “We are so grateful to Volkswagen of America, Inc. and to The Conservation Fund for making all of this possible.”

Here’s a schedule of the Cherokee National Forest River Cleanup Series presented by Volkswagen:

CHEROKEE NATIONAL FOREST RIVER CLEANUP SERIES SCHEDULE

Saturday, Feb. 6                                 | Watauga Lake
Saturday, Feb. 13                               | South Holston Lake
Saturday, Feb. 20                               | Tellico Lake
Saturday, Feb. 27                               | Parksville Lake
Sunday, Feb. 28                                 | Ocoee River

A shot taken while KTNRB was scouting for litter sites on Watauga Lake, the kickoff location of the Cherokee National Forest River Cleanup Series presented by Volkswagen.

Originally, the cleanup series was scheduled to be held in 2020, but has been postponed due to COVID-19. Since that time, KTNRB worked to develop a policy for volunteer and staff safety at cleanups held during the pandemic. (KTNRB’s COVID-19 policy can be viewed at www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org/covid). 

KTNRB resumed river cleanups in August with a new AmeriCorps member on board after a five-month halt due to quarantine.

At that point, Gibi said the organization was just hoping to meet the record it had set in 2019 with over 48,000 lbs. of trash removed. By the time 2020 came to a close, the organization had worked with over 300 volunteers who removed more than 61,000 lbs. of litter from the Tennessee River and its tributaries.

“It’s a real testimony to the difference public-private partnerships can make for our community,” said Gibi. “This year, we’ve got our sights set on a goal to remove 100,000 lbs. of trash from our waterways, and it’s all possible because Volkswagen and The Conservation Fund invested in our efforts with their grant.”

Gibi said that the litter collected in 2020 was a 22% increase from their previous 2019 record that they set the year they first put their work boat in the water. Since the organization formed in 2016, KTNRB has rallied 1,700 volunteers to remove 180,000 lbs. of trash.

“Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful and all of its volunteers are outstanding stewards of this beautiful and critical watershed in eastern Tennessee, and we are honored to support the work they do benefiting people, wildlife, recreation and water quality,” said Katie Allen, Director of The Conservation Fund's Conservation Leadership Network.

Other supporting sponsors of the cleanup series include the Tennessee Valley Authority, the Tennessee Department of Transportation, Keep America Beautiful, and Keep Tennessee Beautiful.

To register to volunteer in the Cherokee National Forest River Cleanup Series presented by Volkswageen, visit www.KeepTNRiverBeautiful.org/CNF. 

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Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful is the first Keep America Beautiful affiliate in the nation to focus solely on a river. They aim to rally communities along the river to preserve, improve and protect the river for generations to come. To date, 1,700 volunteers have helped the organization to remove 180,000 lbs. of trash along the 652-mile Tennessee River and its tributary.