30th annual Eagle River Cleanup’s 250 volunteers clean up nearly 40 miles of Eagle County waterways
Post-event barbecue celebrates 3 decades of commitment to preserving water quality, quantity
Chris Dillmann/Vail Daily
Dressed in bright orange and yellow high visibility vests, nearly 250 volunteers spread across the banks of Gore Creek, the Eagle River and the Upper Colorado River on Saturday to collect a summer’s worth of garbage.
The volunteers were participating in the Eagle River Coalition’s 30th annual Eagle River Cleanup. Every year, the river cleanup volunteers remove between 2 and 6 tons of trash from Eagle County’s largest waterways.
“It’s great to get outside and actively do the cleanup,” said Peder Franzen, the Eagle River Coalition’s watershed restoration manager. “But I think more importantly, to me, this is a really great expression of community.”
Volunteers collected over 5 tons of trash at last year’s Eagle River Cleanup. The final weight of what was collected this year will not be known until the end of the week when Vail Honeywagon and the Colorado Department of Transportation can collect and weigh all the trash.
The river cleanup is a yearly step toward protecting water quality and quantity in Eagle County.
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“There are 120 named and recognized streams and waterways in Eagle County, along with eight reservoirs, and those all fall within Eagle River Coalition’s mission to protect and restore and educate about and monitor our watershed, which is 970 square miles,” said Melanie Smith, the Eagle River Coalition’s development director.
The Eagle River Coalition’s post-winter event, the Community Pride Highway Cleanup, brought together 860 volunteers who picked up 17 tons of trash in May. Through other Eagle River Coalition events, volunteers have planted close to 1,600 native trees and shrubs along Eagle County’s waterways.
“It can feel difficult to feel like we’re making any difference with something as big and challenging as water, but when you’re able to look at the before and after of what you just cleaned up and see that there are so many orange bags of trash that are now leaving those areas clean for wildlife and for recreationalists and for water users and the public to enjoy, it’s meaningful,” Smith said. “And it’s bringing to light our waste and being able to take care of our environment as best we can.”
Following the river cleanup, all 1,060 volunteers who have contributed to the Eagle River Coalition’s projects this year were invited to the traditional post-river cleanup barbeque, hosted at Broken Arrow Café in Arrowhead.
Volunteers were treated to live music, burgers and hot dogs supplied by Vail Resorts Epic Promise, free beer and a wealth of raffle prizes ranging from hats to a half-day wading trip for two.
“It’s one big celebration because our rivers are worth celebrating. People come out in droves to do this good work, and we want to honor those volunteers and the sponsors, community members, that made it possible,” Smith said.
In the early days of the Eagle River Cleanup 30 years ago, a passionate crew of people coordinated the entire process over the phone. Over time, the event evolved to include team leaders assigned to stretches of river. The barbecue has always been a staple.
This year’s volunteers, in 32 teams, cleaned up between 38 and 40 miles of river. Teams were made up of varying combinations of individuals and organizations, from local businesses and municipalities to families and friends. “We have teams made up of everything from anglers and river guides and outfitters to private homeowners who want to clean up their neighborhood and have a reason to gather with their neighbors, (and) local businesses,” Smith said.
“We wouldn’t be able to make this as big as it is if it wasn’t for members of the community having their own pockets of deeper community that they’re able to tap into and extend that invitation to,” Franzen said.
The award for the strangest piece of trash found during the river cleanup went to the Encore Electric team, which found an indoor cycling conversion stand in their eastern Edwards section of the Eagle River.
Though volunteers are given autonomy under the supervision of their team leader to engage with the slippery banks of the river and to collect trash near roadways, the Eagle River Coalition has made safety a priority. Ensuring volunteer safety during the cleanup is “our No. 1 priority,” Smith said. Volunteers are required to wear high visibility safety vests at all times, regardless of whether they are near roads, and are asked to bring their own gloves and closed-toed shoes.
Smith and Franzen both said they anticipate the river cleanup continuing to evolve in the future. “Just like it’s changed from being an event that was coordinated by telephone by a handful of passionate individuals, to the event that it is today, bringing together hundreds of committed volunteers, we expect that the event will continue to change and grow and be a way that people can deepen their commitment to protecting the landscapes here,” Smith said.
The organization is “hoping to work more with the Spanish-speaking community” going forward, as well as create more avenues for accessibility, Smith said.
Technology is also taking steps toward reducing the amount of trash that ends up in waterways. Some local municipalities, including Minturn and Vail, are implementing new stormwater drainage systems that prevent trash from entering the waterways, Franzen said.
Just one morning of focused, coordinated effort can make a big difference for the watershed and all those that rely on it. “It also just looks so much better when people are done, and it’s so fun to see the difference from before and after,” Smith said. “We know that the beavers and the fish and the macroinvertebrates and the deer and the elk appreciate the removal of the trash from their homes, too.”
