TENNESSEE — Volunteers hosted by nonprofit Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful pulled nearly ten tons of trash from the Tennessee River in the month of October, they reported.
In a statement included in a release about the clean-up efforts, KTRB Executive Director Kathleen Gibi said, “In a time when neighboring river systems are suffering loss from drought, I think people are realizing how precious our water is, and they’re coming out in masses to our cleanups because they see they have the power to make a significant, tangible difference.”
The KTNRB hosted four cleanups in October, the release explains. In 2022 alone, the group has removed a total of 104,977 pounds of trash from the river.
Gibi says it wouldn’t have been possible without help from local, state and national partners.
October was jointly declared Keep the Tennessee River Watershed Beautiful Month by Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee and Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear and received sponsorship from Swiss watchmaking company Oris Watches USA.
KTRB reported the following statistics on their October cleanups:
- Oct. 1: Knoxville, TN — 5,763 pounds of trash collected by 49 volunteers.
- Oct. 2: Chattanooga, TN — 2,873 pounds of trash collected by 65 volunteers.
- Oct. 21: Counce, TN/Iuka — 4,341 pounds of trash collected by 59 volunteers.
- Oct. 22: Benton, KY — 6,327 pounds of trash collected by 28 volunteers.
Since the nonprofit was founded in 2016, they’ve reportedly removed 435,000 pounds of trash from waterways. Gibi says the growth in their volunteer base has been inspiring and credits them with making actual change for local waterways.
To learn more about KTRB and future clean up dates, visit their website here.
Original Article Posted by WPSD Local 6.
Reposted by Jack Vincent, Lakefront Living, On The Lake Realty
