QUAD-CITIES—Xstream Cleanup—a Quad-Cities initiative to clean up our water for drinking, recreation, wildlife and commerce—is making big changes.
This year Xstream Cleanup will provide greater opportunities for volunteers to make a difference through a variety of fun events starting in March and continuing throughout the year. The annual, large-scale cleanup will not be held in August.
“Rather than funnel our resources into a one-day event, we want to grow Xstream Cleanup to include opportunities year-round,” said Curtis Lundy, longtime event chair.
The group that organizes Xstream Cleanup includes Waste Commission of Scott County, which houses event supplies and provides event coordination and training at its Scott Area Recycling Center on Carey Avenue in Davenport. The Recycling Center currently is closed for construction, slated to re-open in summer 2016.
“Construction at the Recycling Center presented a challenge to organizing our event as usual for 2016, so our planning group took a step back. We decided to use the opportunity to evaluate Xstream Cleanup—what’s been going well, and where we could improve. Ultimately, we decided that our incredible base of engaged volunteers could make an even bigger community impact if we made some changes,” said Kathy Morris, director of Waste Commission of Scott County.
Volunteers are encouraged to stay connected with Xstream Cleanup to hear about upcoming opportunities, which begin in March. They can “like” Xstream Cleanup on Facebook to see regular updates, and visit www.xstreamcleanup.org, where they can see an updated list of cleanups around the area and subscribe to e-news, which will be sent quarterly and will include a list of scheduled cleanups.
Since Xstream Cleanup began in 2004, volunteers have met one morning in August every year at 40 sites around the Quad-Cities to do things like clean up litter and illegal dumping, remove invasive species, beautify natural areas, and mark storm drains. Over the course of 12 annual events, a total of 15,585 volunteers have cleaned up a combined 950,382 pounds of garbage from area waterways.
Xstream Cleanup continues to be made possible by generous support provided by the following: Group O, Riverboat Development Authority, Alcoa, Triumph Community Bank, Iowa American Water, Eastern Iowa Grain Inspection and Weighing Service, Rock Island County Waste Management Agency, Alter Metal Recycling, DHL Global Forwarding, McCarthy Bush Corporation, MidAmerican Energy, Quad City Conservation Alliance, Sears Seating, Wallace’s Garden Center, Radish Magazine, and Midas Auto Systems Experts.
For more information, visit www.xstreamcleanup.org.
