VIRGINIA BEACH — In 1989, a group of Hampton Roads residents concerned about litter launched Clean the Bay to clean up trash and debris from the areas waterways.
A number of years later, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation took over organizing the even to generate more community involvement. This June will mark its 30th anniversary.
Each year on the first Saturday in June, about 6,000 volunteers pitch in at hundreds of sites across the state to remove many thousands of pounds of debris from Virginia parks and waterways.
The event will include litter cleanup on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay, remarks from the founders and CBF on the beginnings and growth of this phenomenon, and vintage Clean the Bay Day materials from the 1980s and 1990s.
Kenny Fletcher of the CBF said “this grassroots cleanup has made a big difference in improving our waterways by engaging Virginians to tackle litter, a very visible and pervasive form of pollution that often is a sign of other problems.”
Clean the Bay Day frequently springboards participants into citizen action and advocacy to address other dangerous forms of pollution.
Since the event started in 1989 volunteers have picked up more than 6.5 million pounds of debris. This year Clean the Bay Day will take place on June 2 from 9 a.m. to noon.
Registration is available on the Chesapeake Bay Foundation website.
