The Annual Franklin County Rivers Cleanup
(formerly The Green River Cleanup)
Every year the Deerfield River Watershed Association, along with the Connecticut River Conservancy, co-sponsors a cleanup of the river systems in Franklin County. Hundreds of volunteer students, adults, families, local governments and businesses pitch in for two days of river and watershed cleanup.
2024 Details
The Franklin County Rivers Cleanup has been created to foster the cleanup of watersheds and river systems within Franklin County. The Franklin County Rivers Cleanup will be held September 28, 2024 in conjunction with the Connecticut River Conservancy Source to Sea Cleanup. There will be several local river cleanups going on, but the Deerfield River Watershed Association likes to put a primary focus on the Green River, a tributary to the Deerfield River. Groups are encouraged to organize the cleanup of their own local rivers within Franklin County on this date, or join us.
For example, the Green River Cleanup portion of the County-wide cleanup is now in its 21st year and will be staged at the Green River Recreation and Swim Area on Nash's Mill Rd., in Greenfield on September 28th. (Local schools and businesses will participate on the 27th.) The event on the 28th begins at 9 AM and runs until 5 PM. Coffee, donuts, lunch, and music are provided for cleanup volunteers! Beer tasting for the adults. Crafts for the young at heart.
Please wear pants, boots or sturdy shoes, and gloves, and bring refillable water bottles and a tick repellent. We have some basic gloves you can use and will provide trash bags. Cleanup tools such as rakes, shovels, brooms, come-alongs, and trucks can be helpful at certain project sites!
For more information and to volunteer as a group or individual, please register using the links below. You can also show up at Nash’s Mill Road as an individual, but we prefer you register online if you can.
Click here to register for the Green River cleanup event
We are also seeking donations of food from commercial food vendors and monetary contributions to the Deerfield River Watershed Association from business sponsors! Please contact David Boles at: greenrdb@gmail.com
See you at the cleanup!
FYI: Other cleanups occur throughout the year. For example, the Blue Bag - Greenfield City Cleanup is set up once or twice each year. Greenfield residents, stay tuned! Other local businesses and groups also coordinate cleanups with the Deerfield River Watershed Association throughout the year, such as on Earth Day.
Watch this page or the Deerfield River Watershed Association Facebook page for details on more events open to public participation.
DRWA Board Member Charlie Olchowski leading reuse return recycle station
Organizing the cleanup crews.
Cleanup Sponsors
Gathering up for instructions.
Greenfield Fire Department cleaning off tires from a huge tire dump cleaned up by prison inmates.
Volunteers sorting collected debris for recycling.
DRWA Board Member David Boles - Command Center Table.jpg
Fueling up before heading out to the cleanup sites.
Volunteers collecting tires that had been rolled down the hillside and into the river.
Debris collected along waterways and dumped for sorting at the Green River Swimming and Recreation Area.
Jammin’ to reggae music at lunch.
DRWA Cleanup Table
