Rose Ramsey and her mother Angela Ramsey clean up trash before Clean the Bay Day. (WYDaily / Photo by Kelly Ramsey. Courtesy of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation)
REGIONAL – The Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) is bringing back their annual Clean the Bay Day in a new way this year. What was once a single day devoted to garbage collection has been reinterpreted as a week-long cleanup across Virginia.
Last year’s Clean the Bay Day was canceled due to COVID-19. This was the first time that the CBF tradition had been skipped a year since the event began in 1989.
Prior to 2020, on the first Saturday in June, thousands of volunteers gathered at hundreds of cleanup sites across Virginia and retrieved over 100,000 pounds of trash every year.
Now, with a full week devoted to cleaning, everyone can safely participate to help restore the environment by either cleaning up trash everywhere, planting native plants, or installing rain barrels. Volunteers can take action in any convenient location, in their own time and at their own pace. You can then log your results online.
“The revamped Clean the Bay Day is making it easier than ever for people to restore their local rivers, streams and the Chesapeake Bay,” said Kristin Webb, CBF Clean the Bay Day coordinator. “Do you have a few minutes off? Grab a trash bag and gloves and do a trash cleanup in your neighborhood. Do you want to go out of the house with the kids? Do a cleanup in a local public park. “
This year’s Clean the Bay Day takes place from May 31st to June 5th. Volunteers are encouraged to post videos and photos on social media and use the hashtag #CleanTheBayDay to win prizes.
Families or friends can use the Clean the Bay Day online portal to form a virtual team and report on the progress, where their actions are visible to other participants in the event. Registration and reporting results are required to participate and win prizes.
“We’re promoting a friendly competition as people post their results on the Clean the Bay Day website and post photos and videos on social media,” said Webb. “This will bring people together and lead to more people taking action. From Charlottesville to Richmond to Virginia Beach to Northern Virginia, I can’t wait to see reviews and photos of how everyone is doing their part for our waterways. “
The prizes are awarded in different categories, including the best photo and the best video.
Interested parties can find more information or register by clicking here.
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