Volunteers are being called on to help clean up the Chattahoochee River and its tributaries during the annual “Sweep the Hooch” on Saturday, March 21, from 9 a.m. to noon.
Organized by Chattahoochee Riverkeeper (CRK), as part of its “Trash-Free Chattahoochee” initiative, Sweep the Hooch is a yearly cleanup that brings together willing participants at numerous parks and creeks throughout the Chattahoochee River watershed.
As part of the event, volunteers work on foot, in streams and from canoes/kayaks to remove the various trash and recyclables that occupy the littered areas, with gloves and trash bags provided to each participant — along with a complimentary one-year CRK membership from the environmental organization as a token of appreciation.
Sweep the Hooch has grown exponentially since its inception almost 16 years ago, with last year’s initiative drawing 1,500 volunteers who collectively removed 82,000 pounds of trash and recyclables in a single day, both measures of which were record highs.
This year’s event will target more than 65 cleanup sites across 15 counties, stretching from the river’s headwaters in North Georgia to the Columbus metro area.
“The volume of trash in the river and its tributaries is overwhelming,” says Tammy Bates, CRK’s Outings Director. “That’s what’s great about Sweep the Hooch: volunteers can put in the hours and actually see what they’ve accomplished at the end of the day. Repeat participants look forward to this day every spring and we welcome new faces to the fold each year.”
Participation for Sweep the Hooch is free, although volunteers are required to register at sweepthehooch.org. CRK recommends that interested teams, clubs and community groups sign up early, on account of sites closing availability once their volunteer capacity has been reached.