Over 70 miles of river with 439.98 tons of trash collection makes for one serious environmental cleanup as Kittatinny Canoes completes a quarter century tackling the task in their annual On and Under the Delaware River Cleanup Now through the 23rd. The Upper Delaware Scenic & Recreational River, along with, Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area are the targets of this massive preservation effort that has enlisted thousands of volunteers over the years.
The three day long exertion kicks off at Kittatinny Campgrounds’ site in Barryville, New York with an 8:30 a.m. breakfast and introductions at 9:15. The cleanup keeps moving right along with Tuesday’s site set meeting next to the Dingman’s Ferry Bridge. Sorting all the trash collected wraps up the final day at the group’s Matamoras Base.
An impressive yet still disheartening tally of 8,547 tires and over 8,500 pounds of aluminum cans reminds all of the massive buildup one piece of litter can snowball into. So they ask everyone to bring it don’t fling it to the nearest garbage can and help the Kittatinny stand in cutting back on those colossal numbers and lean towards the less is best mantra.
Ruth and Dave Jones tell of plans to continue the yearly campaign thanking volunteers for their help in tidying what the Kittatinny crew fondly refers to as “Ruth’s Delaware River.”
Calling the annual event a “big reunion” of friends the Kittatinny “family” hopes to encourage all those who revel in the aquatic splendor to consider joining in with the 100 volunteers per day quota by calling 1(800) 356-2852 to RSVP.
More information can be found at www.kittatinny.com.
