Clean Streams

and MemesPresented by Joshua Francy,

Founder and Coordinator

Clean Streams and Memes

Clean Streams and Memes (C:SaM) is a movement to

remove the garbage from our riverbeds, shorelines, and creek banks in the Grays Harbor area

of Washington.

Beginnings

Since the unincorporated nonprofit association began in February of 2013, we have had weekly cleanups almost every

weekend.

Vision of C:SaM

We dream of a pristine, healthy watershed. We envision the rivers and lakes in this area clean and enjoyed

by all.

We dream of a Grays Harbor that is not polluted by plastic, styrofoam,

syringes and oil.

To the Benefit of AllThis movement is not just an “environmental” effort. It is for the benefit of everyone who uses the waterways in this area, including: boaters, fishermen, clam diggers, and swimmers.

Bad Moods

We know that walking or driving past an area that is treated as a dumpster puts people into a bad mood. We know that we can do something about that.

Wildlife

The fish, birds, crustaceans, and mammals that live in the waterways also benefit from the cleanups. They have more livable homes after each cleanup.

Critters from around the cleanups

Sources of GarbageThe litter isn’t just from people tossing garbage on the ground,

or just homeless people and drug addicts, or just garbage

washing ashore, but all of these things combined and the mindset that creates the

products.

Plan of ActionMotivate community members to volunteer their

timeClean a spot on the shoreline in the area every

weekDocument the cleanups and the impact we makeUtilize social media to spread word of the

planned events and the results of the cleanupsBegin removing invasive plant species found

around and within our waterways

Group pictures from Cleanups

Locations

So far this year C:SaM has had eighteen cleanup events. We have focused around where the Wishkah and Chehalis Rivers join together and become the waters of Grays Harbor. We have also cleaned up two streams that locals have requested.

Wishkah Bridge Cleanup

East mouth of the Wishkah River

Wilson Creek

Totals

We started recording how much we have removed from the watershed at the start of this year. Overall we have removed 1,612 lbs, 1,378 lbs of that was un-recyclable garbage and 233 lbs of recyclable materials.

We have Removed 1888 Recyclable Containers this Year

The recycling removed has included: 1257 plastic containers

224 glass bottles 409 aluminum cans

75 straws 122 syringes.

Pictures of the Recycling

Watershed pH

We have also begun monitoring the ph of the water around the cleanups. The average ph has been around 7.2. The usual results from the Chehalis and Wishkah Rivers are 7.4 and 7.0

Cleanup Locations

We have focused our cleanups mostly in Aberdeen, because that is where the most impact can be made at this time. We have

had cleanups in Hoquiam and Montesano as well as Elma and do plan on having events in

Westport, Hoquiam and Montesano soon.

Closing

We have removed more than three fourths of a ton from the shorelines in

four months. We have also stopped almost 2,000 recyclable containers from

sitting in our waterways in that time. More than a half of those containers were made of plastic. We have also removed more than 100 syringes.

Closing

We plan on making quite an impact this year. Thank you for your interest in this program and we hope you can help us make a bigger impact.