ANNOUNCED: THE GREAT MISSISSIPPI RIVER CLEAN-UP

		What is The Great Mississippi River Cleanup? Living Lands & Waters (LL&W) is hosting the first-ever simultaneous one-day cleanup of the Upper Mississippi River from St. Paul, MN to St. Louis, MO. The Great Mississippi River Cleanup will solicit approximately 800-1000 community volunteers from an estimated 20-30 cities in 5 states along the river to remove disregarded debris from the floodplains and wetlands bordering the Upper Mississippi River. When is the The Great Mississippi River Cleanup? Saturday, June 19, 2010, from 9:00am-1:00p What Cities are Participating? LL&W is still working to confirm each cleanup location. Below is the list of cities we hope will participate: St. Paul, MN Red Wing, MN Lake City, MN Wabasha, MN Winona, MN LaCrosse, WI Prairie du Chien, WI Cassville, WI Dubuque, IA Sabula, IA Bellevue, IA Clinton, IA Cordova, IL Quad Cities, IL/IA Buffalo, IA Muscatine, IA New Boston, IL Burlington, IA Fort Madison, IA Dallas City, IL Keokuk, IA LaGrange, MO Quincy, IL Louisiana, MO Clarksville, MO Grafton, IL Alton, IL Wood River, IL St. Louis, MO How can I get Involved? Putting on such an ambitious event takes a lot of work from a lot of people. LL&W is looking for assistance from community volunteers, organizations, and businesses in the following capacities: Site Coordinators:  LL&W is looking to appoint at least one locally-based site coordinator, at each location. Site coordinators will be armed with LL&W's guidance and assistance to recruit local volunteers, locate boats and drivers for transporting volunteers, solicit donations for supplies, identify disposal facilities, and more. Please click here for a full description of site coordinator duties. Note that not all duties listed are required. LL&W staff will be available to fill in any gaps that site coordinators may not have the time or expertise to execute. Having said that, duties of site coordinators could easily be split up among co-coordinators within a community. Volunteers:  LL&W is looking for able-bodied volunteers of all ages to assist in garbage collection on the actual day of the cleanup, from 9a-1p. Minors will need to be accompanied by an adult or guardian. Around April 15th, LL&W will have an estimate of the desired number of volunteers needed at each site. This number will reflect the amount of debris needed to be picked up at each site. (i.e. The more garbage there is, the more volunteers we'll need.) All volunteers will receive a free t-shirt or reusable stainless steel water bottle for their participation and a free lunch. Volunteers are strongly encouraged to pre-register.Find the registration form here. Volunteer Boats and Boat Drivers:  LL&W is looking for safe and responsible water enthusiasts to assist with hauling volunteers in their boats to cleanup locations. If possible, LL&W is also looking for people who are willing to haul debris in their boats to the boat launch where roll-off dumpsters or other disposal facilities will be in place. #1 RULE: All boat drivers must enforce the wearing of a PFD by each passenger (and the driver him/herself). NO EXCEPTIONS!!!! Donations:  LL&W is seeking donations for this event. Please see the wish-list below: Garbage Bags (preferably a durable bag such as contractor strength or Glad ForceFlex) Gloves (leather, Kevlar lined, or cloth) both adult and kid sizes Water (for volunteers) Lunch/Snacks (for volunteers after the cleanup) Bug Spray Sunscreen Disposal (dumpsters, trailers, trucks, to haul debris to disposal facilities) Printing (maps, flyers, posters, banners, t-shirts, water bottles, etc.) First-Aid Kits Fuel (for boats) Who do I Contact if I have Questions? Project Coordinator: Tammy Becker, 309.236.0725, tammy@livinglandsandwaters.org Project Assistant: Nora Coyne-Logan, 309.236.0728, nora@livinglandsandwaters.org MORE INFORMATION WILL BE COMING SOON. PLEASE CHECK BACK.    Tammy Becker Project Coordinator 309.236.0725 tammy@livinglandsandwaters.org