With the help of our members and other incredible volunteers, we send teams directly into the rivers to rid them of trash. Many sections of the river are broken up by fallen trees. These create what we call chokeholds, barring a clear kayak path and allowing for the accumulation of trash. In order to remove the trees, we first must clear out the debris; including cans, bottles, bags and other single use plastics. Then, when we are certain we aren’t simply flushing trash further down the river, we take out the trees and create a cleaner, safer place to be. Ideally, a kayak could travel uninterrupted down the entirety of the Chickahominy.

We want the river to be a fun place for families to spend time and enjoy nature. We also want the animals in the river to remain safe and healthy. Unfortunately, we have found that neither of those things can occur or continue if we are unable to stop the problem where it starts- with the simple act of littering. Few people know that every piece of trash that is dropped onto the ground eventually flows into our rivers and then to the ocean. All of that trash ends up in the water, where animals are struggling to survive. Birds, turtles, and fish are found with bottle caps in their stomachs and plastic rings around their necks. To stop this, we encourage recycling, safe disposal of trash and outright refusal of unnecessary plastics like drinking straws. We increase awareness of this issue through our social media sites and our merchandise.

This part of our mission isn’t so different from promoting awareness of the problem. In this prevention, we work with larger businesses and restaurants instead of the individual. For example, we hope to create anti-straw artwork to be posted in places that include them with their drinks. We also strive to cultivate relationships with bigger businesses that contribute to plastic pollution by assisting them in their transition to recycling.

We would love for all the children of the area to understand plastic pollution and their ability to make a positive impact on the rivers they play in and grow up on. We speak with local schools to incorporate our posters into their classrooms, and we educate from our booths at festivals and concerts. We plan to continue to involve the youth in our future awareness campaigns and keep them interested in the environment with other opportunities ahead.