21st Annual Conasauga Watershed Clean-up Announced

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The 2015 river cleanup has been scheduled for October 24. Click on the image to download the event flyer with directions. 

The 2015 river cleanup has been scheduled for October 24. Click on the image to download the event flyer with directions. 

(Dalton, GA, September 24, 2015) –  Whitfield County and Murray County residents are invited to participate in the 21st Annual Conasauga Watershed Clean-up event on Saturday, October 24, 2015 to help keep local waterways clean. As one of the largest local volunteer events in the community the annual Conasauga River cleanup is hosted in partnership with several local non-profits, businesses, and environmental organizations during United Way’s Make a Difference Day. Last year 360 volunteers picked up and removed 10,630 pounds of garbage from seven locations.

Be a part of the tradition next month when you join many other volunteers to help clean-up the Conasauga. One of the six most biologically diverse freshwater river systems in the United States, the Conasauga River supports 24 endangered species and a dozen other imperiled species, including the Southern Pigtoe mussel and the Conasauga logperch, a fish found nowhere else in the world.

This year’s event takes place from 9:00 am to noon at seven different sites across both Whitfield and Murray counties which includes:

1. Conasauga River at Carlton Petty Road bridge

2. Conasauga River at Highway 2 bridge

3. Conasauga River at Lower King’s Bridge and Norton Bridge

4. Holly Creek, Murray County, on the Chattahoochee National Forest

5. Mill Creek tributary in the City of Dalton

6. Coahulla Creek at Prater’s Mill

7. Lakeshore Park in the City of Dalton

Participants are encouraged to arrive a few minutes before 9:00 am for registration. Volunteers can expect to spend a couple of hours in the morning picking up trash and, depending on the location, removing invasive plants like Chinese privet. Volunteers should wear sturdy shoes or boots, long pants, and long sleeve shirts. Gloves, and trash bags will be provided at each site. At least the first 250 will receive a free t-shirt with this year’s river cleanup logo from Rivers Alive, and another promo item as a thank you for participating.

To learn more about the river cleanup call Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful at 706-278-5001 or visit www.KeepDaltonWhitfieldBeautiful.org to download the event flyer with directions to each site. Join and share the event on Facebook page at www.facebook.com/KeepDaltonWhitfieldBeautiful.

Event organizers this year include: Conasauga River Alliance, Dalton State College, Dalton Utilities, Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority, Keep Chatsworth-Murray Beautiful, Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful, Limestone Valley RC & D, The Nature Conservancy, and Whitfield & Murray County Extension.

Sponsors include: Shaw Industries, J+J Industries, Dalton Utilities, Conasauga River Alliance, Modern Woodmen of America / Shell Underwood, The Nature Conservancy, Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority, and Whitfield County Public Works.