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Clean Streams
and MemesPresented by Joshua Francy,
Founder and Coordinator
Clean Streams and Memes
Clean Streams and Memes (C:SaM) is a movement to
remove the garbage from our riverbeds, shorelines, and creek banks in the Grays Harbor area
of Washington.
Beginnings
Since the unincorporated nonprofit association began in February of 2013, we have had weekly cleanups almost every
weekend.
Vision of C:SaM
We dream of a pristine, healthy watershed. We envision the rivers and lakes in this area clean and enjoyed
by all.
We dream of a Grays Harbor that is not polluted by plastic, styrofoam,
syringes and oil.
To the Benefit of AllThis movement is not just an “environmental” effort. It is for the benefit of everyone who uses the waterways in this area, including: boaters, fishermen, clam diggers, and swimmers.
Bad Moods
We know that walking or driving past an area that is treated as a dumpster puts people into a bad mood. We know that we can do something about that.
Wildlife
The fish, birds, crustaceans, and mammals that live in the waterways also benefit from the cleanups. They have more livable homes after each cleanup.
Critters from around the cleanups
Sources of GarbageThe litter isn’t just from people tossing garbage on the ground,
or just homeless people and drug addicts, or just garbage
washing ashore, but all of these things combined and the mindset that creates the
products.
Plan of ActionMotivate community members to volunteer their
timeClean a spot on the shoreline in the area every
weekDocument the cleanups and the impact we makeUtilize social media to spread word of the
planned events and the results of the cleanupsBegin removing invasive plant species found
around and within our waterways
Group pictures from Cleanups
Locations
So far this year C:SaM has had eighteen cleanup events. We have focused around where the Wishkah and Chehalis Rivers join together and become the waters of Grays Harbor. We have also cleaned up two streams that locals have requested.
Wishkah Bridge Cleanup
East mouth of the Wishkah River
Wilson Creek
Totals
We started recording how much we have removed from the watershed at the start of this year. Overall we have removed 1,612 lbs, 1,378 lbs of that was un-recyclable garbage and 233 lbs of recyclable materials.
We have Removed 1888 Recyclable Containers this Year
The recycling removed has included: 1257 plastic containers
224 glass bottles 409 aluminum cans
75 straws 122 syringes.
Pictures of the Recycling
Watershed pH
We have also begun monitoring the ph of the water around the cleanups. The average ph has been around 7.2. The usual results from the Chehalis and Wishkah Rivers are 7.4 and 7.0
Cleanup Locations
We have focused our cleanups mostly in Aberdeen, because that is where the most impact can be made at this time. We have
had cleanups in Hoquiam and Montesano as well as Elma and do plan on having events in
Westport, Hoquiam and Montesano soon.
Closing
We have removed more than three fourths of a ton from the shorelines in
four months. We have also stopped almost 2,000 recyclable containers from
sitting in our waterways in that time. More than a half of those containers were made of plastic. We have also removed more than 100 syringes.
Closing
We plan on making quite an impact this year. Thank you for your interest in this program and we hope you can help us make a bigger impact.