Celebrating 16 Years Of Keeping The Allegheny Clean
Volunteers clean up a section of the Allegheny River as part of the Allegheny River and Watershed annual event.
(The Bradford Era) Allegheny River and Watershed Cleanup celebrates its sweet 16 this year.
For more than a decade and a half, family, friends and the community have gathered to clean various locations along the Allegheny River near Warren. Since 2005, nearly 5,500 volunteers have donated more than 48,000 hours removing trash from the watershed. They have pulled out television sets, microwave ovens, lawn chairs, refrigerators, 55-gallon drums, more than 17,500 tires and recycled almost 160,000 pounds of metal! Countless bags have been filled with recyclable metal, glass, plastic and aluminum.
Set to take place today through Saturday, this year’s cleanup celebrates a significant milestone as the Allegheny River has been named Pennsylvania’s 2024 River of the Year. As in years past, this year’s event is part of Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful’s Pick Up Pennsylvania initiative, which encourages community cleanups across the state. Pick Up Pennsylvania provides free trash bags, gloves and safety vests to volunteers for events held from Sept. 1 through Nov. 30. This collaboration underscores the importance of statewide efforts to keep Pennsylvania’s natural resources clean and beautiful.
