MEDIA ADVISORY--BTS INVITES YOU TO CLEAN-UP BUTLER LAKE IN LIBERTYVILLE, IL ON 4/24


 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 22 March 2010 CONTACT Kristian Gustavson, Below the Surface, Founder & Expedition Leader—p: 760.277.3503 e: kristian@belowthesurface.org Anne Veselack, Below the Surface, Chicagoland Coordinator—p.847.918.9738 e: anne@belowthesurface.org ______________________________________________________________________

Below the Surface Partners with IL EPA & Lake County Stormwater Management Commission for a clean-up @ Butler Lake in

Libertyville

~Acting Locally & Thinking Globally is the Theme for This Earth Day Event~

Libertyville, IL – On April 24th 2010, beginning at 10:00 AM at the Butler Lake Fishing Pier—Below the Surface (BTS) will launch their second annual clean-up at Butler Lake in Libertyville, IL. The IL EPA is helping to fund this effort through a SCALE grant (Streambank Clean-up And Lakeshore Enhancement).

Attendees are encouraged to bring their own gloves, boots, and grubby clothes. Bags and other clean-up gear will be provided from the Lake County Stormwater Management Commission. This event is part Earth Day celebration and part homecoming for BTS Founder & Exploration Team Leader Kristian Gustavson. It will be held RAIN OR SHINE. Participants are also welcome to bring canoes & rowboats to assist with the effort.

This clean-up effort will direct volunteers to the littered areas above and below the lake as it is part of the Bull Creek Watershed. Improvements in the watershed will help keep litter out of the Des Plaines River, Illinois and Mississippi Rivers, and ultimately the ocean. Last year's effort is detailed in a report from BTS and available upon request.

Kristian Gustavson's anticipated return to his hometown is following his successful expedition on the Atchafalaya River. This exploration of America's Waterways was covered by a writer and photographer from Reader's Digest; the article is due to be published in June. Discoveries from the expedition will serve to set a precedent for future restoration efforts on the Gulf Coast. The team was also joined by legendary river guide John Ruskey from the Quapaw Canoe Company, two biologists from The National Audubon Society, Pro- Surfer & Eco-Warrior Surfer James Pribram, and numerous local stakeholders. This collaborative effort is an encouraging sign for the type of cooperation needed for enhanced conservation upstream and down.