Volunteers are needed for the 18th Annual River Sweep, the largest organized volunteer river cleanup effort in the country, set to take place from 8 a.m. to noon June 16 in Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Washington and Westmoreland counties.

“The key to making the River Sweep a success is community groups, churches, scout troops, sportsmen’s groups and concerned citizens, who volunteer their time to come out and join in the fight against pollution along the rivers and streams,” Pennsylvania River Sweep Coordinator Don Bialosky said. “While volunteers have cleaned up many sites along our rivers throughout the River Sweep’s history, still more work is needed.”

River Sweep, an annual six-state effort to clean up litter and debris in the Ohio River watershed, is sponsored by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, the Ohio River Valley Sanitation Commission and a number of Pennsylvania corporate sponsors including BASF, Duquesne Light, Dominion Foundation, Exxon, Koppers, AK Steel, PPG Industries, Ashland Inc, Neville Chemical Company and Babst, Calland, Clements and Zomnir, P.C.

The event winds through Ohio, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Indiana, West Virginia and Illinois, covering more than 2,400 miles of shoreline.

Last year, more than 1,100 volunteers collected trash and debris along the Ohio, Allegheny, Beaver, Monongahela and Youghiogheny rivers and their tributaries. Volunteers who participate receive trash bags and a souvenir T-shirt. Refreshments are provided at River Sweep sites.

Residents can pre-register at the Pennsylvania River Sweep webpage.

Information also is available by contacting DEP’s Don Bialosky at 412-442-4187 or send e-mail at epsriversweep@state.pa.us .

6/1/2007