Volunteers sought for Saturday’s Russian River Watershed Cleanup

More than 100 volunteers will spread out along the Russian River on Saturday to haul in the trash that others leave behind in a bid to make the waterway cleaner and prevent refuse from washing into the ocean and becoming part of the Pacific Gyre garbage patch.

It’s the 20th annual Russian River Watershed Cleanup, and organizers say more help is needed if participants are to match the successes of previous years.

Last year, more than 260 adults and local students pitched in along 55 miles of river from Cloverdale to Duncans Mills and removed a stunning 4.2 tons of garbage, including more than 100 tires, two barbecue grills, appliances, electronics, plastic bottles, paper and waste of every other type.

Volunteer Chris Brokate says it’s instantly gratifying to restore a section of garbage-clogged stream to something approaching the scenic habitat it should be.

“You can just totally see the results,” Brokate said, “because at the end of the day you see this big pile of trash that’s out there on the road or in the bins. That’s the satisfaction I get out of it.”

Participants can sign up for walking or canoeing routes, using boats donated by several sponsoring rental groups, Brokate said. Shuttle bus transportation also is available for free.

Most work routes begin between 8  and 9 a.m. and run four to six hours. Safety orientations are included.

Registration links and more information about meeting places and other details are available online at russianrivercleanup.org.

Sponsors include the Sonoma County Water Agency, the Ratto Group, River’s Edge Canoe Trips, Burke’s Canoes, SOAR Inflatables, Brelje and Race Consulting, Creative Images, Russian River Watershed Association, the Russian Riverkeeper, Trashy Haulers and Sequoia Paddlers.

Saturday’s event is one of several this fall offering local residents an opportunity to do their part to restore the health of local waterways.

The next occasion is Saturday, Oct. 17, when the Laguna de Santa Rosa Foundation will host a cleanup of the Laguna Wetlands Preserve in Sebastopol.

That event runs from 9 a.m. to noon, and organizers hope that garbage can be cleared from the Laguna before rain arrives and washes it into the river. Volunteers should meet at Sebastopol’s Youth Park, 390 Morris St.

More information is available from Hattie Brown, the foundation’s conservation science program manager. Contact her at hattie@lagunafoundation.com or 527-9277, ext. 105.

You can reach Staff Writer Mary Callahan at 521-5249 or mary.callahan@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @MaryCallahanB.