Making A Clean Sweep Of It!

Hundreds of volunteers are helping to clean the banks of the Great Miami River Friday and Saturday.

The effort is called "Clean Sweep 2010" and all of the Cox Media Group partners are involved including WHIO-TV, WHIO Radio and the Dayton Daily News.

The volunteers came with plastic trash bags and ready to work. They fanned out in all directions and found garbage along the way.

"Well, I've got this and that and pieces of glass, " said WHIO-TV anchor Cheryl McHenry.

River advocates said the clean sweep is a major step forward in getting more people involved with the river.

Andrew Fahland of American Rivers said, "Our overall goal is to get people out on the river, get them to enjoy and embrace the river and become stewards of it."

Teenagers from the Adventure Central Day Camp in Dayton joined the effort. Also, corporate support came from the Cox Media Group, which has made cleaning up the Great Miami River a real priority.

"People have forgotten it's why we're here. We need to keep the river healthy and green and spend time down here like we're doing today," said Vice President of Cox Media Group, Alex Taylor.

Long term, supporters would like to have the low dam removed and return the river to more of its natural state. Since 2004, volunteers have collected more than 280 tons of trash and 4,113 tires from the river which is a recreational focal point in our area.

On Saturday, volunteers will be sweeping the river in Sidney and Piqua. This is a free event but dirty work and officials want to remind volunteers to wear proper attire, including thick-soled shoes that cover your toes.

If you want to get involved in future efforts, there is an opportunity. Check the community page of whiotv.com.