JOHN COFFELTEditor

Duck River Watershed Society-Spring Clean-up is March 2

The Duck River Watershed Society will hold its third Spring Clean-up event Saturday, March 2, that will cover several miles of shoreline.

The society’s Board Vice-chair/Treasurer Christian Rieseberg said that the group is a relatively new non-profit.

“The first event we did was the Spring Clean-up and now we’re at our third one. It’s been very successful and more successful year after year,” he said.

In addition to more participation over the years, the partnerships have grown too. Rieseberg said that Bonnaroo Works Fund is a major sponsor this year, as well as LKQ Corporation, The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), and the group is in collaboration with the Tennessee Duck River Agency, Coffee County Middle School, and Coffee County Rural Solid Waste.

“Over the first two Clean-ups, we’ve probably collected over five tons of garbage and probably 150-175 tires from the watershed over by Firelake (the furthest upstream TVA Boat Ramp on Normandy Reservoir),” he said.

Rieseberg said the mission of the 501-(c)3 is to garner collaborative partners for the watershed, promote sustainability and education about the watershed.

He noted that the Duck River watershed is one of the, if not the most, most diverse watersheds in America. He said there is over 650 aquatic species that inhabit the watershed, and the Duck River provides over 300,000 people drinking water.

“I call it the little river that could. It certainly has a great impact in Tennessee. It is about 282 miles long. It’s a juggernaut of life and the sustainability of life,” he said.

New DRWS board member Kevin DeMell has participated in the clean-up events since the first one.

“I live right on the lake as well, DeMell said. “Were very active in that and that’s why I’m very passionate about the whole thing.”

The Spring Clean-up will take place from noon to 3 p.m. on Saturday, March 2. All participants should meet at the Fire Lake Public Use and Boat Ramp Area, located on River Forge Road, in Manchester.

This is a free event that features new and exciting SWAG giveaways, food, and a sense of purpose by helping to build sustainability for the Duck River.

Participants, Rieseberg suggested, should come dressed like they would to garden.

“Wear some good footwear that can take a couple of inches of water,” he said.

Participants will collect trash and hand that off to pontoon boats that will be collecting and hauling the debris to awaiting dumpsters at the boat ramp.

“We disperse people around the watershed, around the lake. They are given bags and gloves. Coffee County Rural Solid Waste… have given us bags and really nice gloves,” he said.

He said the event is really easy. The organizers will provide food, t-shirts and other items.

“When I did it two years ago, I went along the shoreline and collected about eight bags of garbage myself. We have boats that come in and we put it on them,” DeMell said.

The Society is a non-profit organization that is based in Coffee County, Tennessee. The DRWS is a membership organization that focuses on building sustainability, health and education relative to America’s most diverse waterway, the Duck River. More than 650 aquatic species call the Duck their home, while 300,000 people a day utilize this important waterway for their drinking water.

For more information about the event and to register, free of charge, please visit the following site: 2024 Spring Clean-up: Free Registration

For additional information, please contact: Christian Rieseberg, Board Vice-chair/Treasurer, at cfrccin@gmail.com or 205-382-3955, Website: https://www.duckriverwatershedsociety.com. 

John has been with the Manchester Times since May 2011. John has won Tennessee Press Association awards for Best News Photo and placed in numerous other categories. John is a 1994 graduate of Tullahoma High School, a graduate of Motlow State Community College and earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from Middle Tennessee State University. He lives in Tullahoma, enjoys painting, dancing and exploring the outdoors.