# Volunteer River, Stream, and Creek Cleanup Grants Awarded



## Hamilton Reef (Jan 20, 2000)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 18, 2006

Contact: Robert McCann (517) 241-7397

Volunteer River, Stream, and Creek Cleanup Grants Awarded

Ten organizations have been selected to receive Volunteer River, Stream, and Creek Cleanup grants totaling $30,342.80 by the Department of Environmental Quality.

Michigan's Volunteer River, Stream, and Creek Cleanup Program provides small grants in the range of $500 to $5,000 to local units of government to assist in efforts to clean up rivers, streams, and creeks, and improve the health of Michigan's waters. 

Groups selected to receive funding in 2006 are: 

* Presque Isle County "Ocqueoc River Cleanup Celebration" $1,844.40
* City of Detroit "Rouge Park River Cleanup" $4,828.50
* Houghton-Keweenaw Conservation District "Gratiot River Cleanup" $525.00
* Clinton County "Friends of the Maple River Kick-off Cleanup" $1,400.00
* Arenac Conservation District "Rifle River Cleanup" $3,000.00
* Hamburg Township "Huron River Clean-Up Day" $5,000.00
* Macomb County Public Works Office "Road-Stream Crossing Cleanup in the Clinton River East and Red Run Subwatersheds" $3,085.00
* St. Clair County Health Department "X-STREAM Makeover" $2,591.50
* Barry County "11th Thornapple River Clean Up" $3,555.00
* Genesee County Drain Commissioner's Office "Flint River and Tributary Cleanup" $4,513.40

Volunteer stream cleanup activities include removing trash and other debris from the water or along the banks, and repositioning trees and other natural debris that block stream corridors to allow stream flow while maintaining the cover and habitat necessary for fish and other aquatic organisms.

Michigan's VRSCCP began in 1998 and is funded through the sale of the state's water quality protection license plates. 

Information on the VRSCCP is available on the GLC Web page at http://www.glc.org/streamclean/.


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## Hamilton Reef (Jan 20, 2000)

Friends of the Rouge looking for help with 2007 cleanup

Friends of the Rouge will have a kickoff meeting and workshop Thursday for people interested in serving as site coordinators for the 2007 Rouge Rescue.

Volunteer site coordinators will plan activities and coordinate volunteers in Rouge River watershed communities for the annual Rouge Rescue cleanup and river celebration June 2.

The Rouge River watershed includes communities in Oakland and Wayne counties.

For meeting location and information, call (313) 792-9621 or visit www.therouge.org.

http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070321/METRO/703210313/1003


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## Hamilton Reef (Jan 20, 2000)

Funds sought to improve Clinton River
Township expected to ask county for $50,000 grant to help end erosion, clear logjams.

http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070416/METRO03/704160337/1003/METRO

04/16/07 Steve Pardo / The Detroit News (586) 468-3614 or [email protected]

CLINTON TOWNSHIP -- Township officials are working to stop erosion and clear logjams on the Clinton River and are looking for a county grant to help cover the expenses.

The township is requesting a total of $50,000 from the Macomb County Lake/River Fund. The goal is to clear debris and logjams in the main and north branches of the Clinton River and Harrington Drain, including a current jam about a half-mile north of Cass on the north branch of the river. Work is also planned to stabilize the bank and create a buffer off the river in the Budd Park area in the center of the township.

"It's a problem now, but if we don't take care of it, it's going to become a major problem," Township Supervisor Robert Cannon said.

The emerald ash borer has played a role with Clinton River logjams in recent years. Trees killed by the pest collapse and end up in the river. The logjams also can lead to flooding.

The county created the fund in the 1990s to deal with Lake St. Clair seaweed problems. The fund now has $275,000 this year for Macomb County municipalities that fill out the proper forms to request the money.

"We decided we should open it up for the river and other water tributaries in the county to help do different things," said county Commissioner Philis DeSaele, R-Sterling Heights. DeSaele is the chair of the County Board's Health Services Committee -- the committee in charge of distributing the funds.

Clinton Township trustees will vote on asking for the funds at tonight's meeting. The vote is expected to pass unanimously.

Cannon said the fund is an excellent example of how the township and the county work together. The county has given money to the township to clear logjams in 2003, 2004 and 2005. The fund requires the township to provide a 25 percent match -- either in money or services.

"Our match will be the engineering and the DPW doing the work," Cannon said. "We're very happy to be able to cooperate with the county on this project."


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## Hamilton Reef (Jan 20, 2000)

Wildlife survives amid pollution
A trip on the Detroit and Rouge rivers gives hope, but the waters still cry out to be cleaned

On a windy, rainy day in late June, Bob Burns of Grosse Ile piloted the Detroit Riverkeeper boat to show Free Press photographer Patricia Beck and me how precarious wildlife can be when it tries to survive in the midst of industry.

Burns invited us to go sightseeing with him after seeing Pat's slides and hearing my talk about our canoe trek two years ago up the Rouge River. On the first day of our five-day, 27-mile voyage, we paddled a heavily laden canoe for the better part of June 6, 2005, up the Rouge River from Zug Island to Fair Lane Manor in Dearborn. We fought against 30-m.p.h. gusts and towed the canoe part of the way.

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070708/CFP03/707080449/1110/NEWS


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