This Earth Day (Saturday, April 22), Giroux Glass partners and friends rallied together for the mid-river portion of the Great Los Angeles River CleanUp, organized by FOLAR (Friends of the LA River). It’s one of Los Angeles’ biggest green events, and the largest urban river clean-up in the United States.
Eager to play a part in beautifying our city, our team met up at around 9 that morning, at a charming place called the “Frog Spot,” located along the Elysian Valley bike path on the west bank of the river. There was live music to enjoy and a fun area to mingle in before we donned our gloves, trash bags, and trash pickers, and descended down the steep cement slope toward the river.
We unearthed countless plastic shopping bags, as well as rusted, gnarled shopping carts, sleeping bags, discarded clothing, blankets, toys, food waste, and nearly whatever else you could think of. According to FOLAR and Daily News LA, the flotsam and jetsam found at the L.A. River is largely due to our latest winter storms which have swept through the watershed, washing up months worth of trash into the channel. Needless to say, we had our work cut out for us! We hit just the tip of the trash iceberg over the weekend.
It has been estimated, and reported by Daily News LA, that the combined efforts over the three Saturdays this month, is expected to shatter a record of 9,000 volunteers who last year hauled out 70 tons of river junk. If up to 12,000 volunteers turn out this Earth month, as expected, the turnout and recovered river rubbish of 2015 will be tripled.
The 28th annual river clean-up efforts began a week prior on April 15, in the upper river. The clean-up is only two-thirds of the way done now, as it will officially conclude on April 29 in the lower river. There’s still time to sign-up and get involved! With 14 clean-up sites along the 51-mile L.A. River, there’s plenty of change being made this year, as FOLAR’s goals are inching closer to reality.
Established in 1986, FOLAR is roughly 100,000 members strong, and continues to take river restoration into their own hands, one trash bag at a time. The river’s natural riparian habitat was largely sacrificed when a massive flood-control project starting in the late 1930s lined the river in concrete. Since then, it’s been a labor of love and pride in our city to ensure a publicly accessible and ecologically sustainable Los Angeles River which can be a public gathering place for all Angelenos, wildlife included.
We’re grateful for our partners who are willing to give of themselves and their free time to give back to our communities. You are welcome to join us next time! Contact [email protected].
