10th annual Earth Day Lower Salt River Cleanup

Hike along the riverbanks & explore the area while picking up trash ⁠or bring your SUP or kayak to help us remove trash from the river. Volunteers can stay at Phon D to pick up trash or explore other rec sites along the river after our sign-in & safety briefing. ⠀

If your employer grants service or volunteer hours, this would be a perfect way to spend the morning. ⁠Check to see if your employer supports 1% for the Planet Environmental Partners & you could help us receive funding for our mission just by volunteering with us! Log your hours & your employer could match your donation. ⁠

Everyone is welcome, including youth volunteers when they are accompanied & supervised by a parent, guardian, or adult group leader. We would be happy to sign off on service hours or provide a Confirmation of Volunteer Service letter for youth volunteers.

EVENT DETAILS:

Sign-in: 8:30-9 am | Safety Briefing: 9:00 am | Cleanup Ends & Raffle Begins: 12 pm

Please arrive before 9am so you can park & sign-in before the safety briefing starts at 9am.

Volunteer Paperwork: We will email you volunteer paperwork a few days before the event. Please print the form, fill it out, and bring it with you to save time. We'll have extras at sign-in. If you need it sooner, email Nicole at [email protected]

Event Staging Location: Phon D Sutton Recreation Area, Mesa, Arizona

Directions: Everyone is meeting at Phon D Sutton Recreation Area in the large parking lot for sign-in, safety briefing, and game plan for the morning. When you arrive at Phon D, take the 2nd left into the second section of the first parking lot.

Once you park, walk over to the shaded picnic area towards the back of the parking lot to turn in your volunteer paperwork at the green Natural Restorations tents. Look for our signs and flags.

GPS Coordinates: 33.545795, -111.659794

***Do not use the EventBrite map to get there, it could send you to the wrong location. Use the GPS coordinates above to get to the event staging location, plug the GPS coordinates above into your phone or mapping system, or search Phon D Sutton Recreation Area, Mesa, Arizona. Plan your route ahead of time in case we cannot take your call.

What to wear: Check the forecast before you head out so you can be prepared & dress accordingly. Please wear comfortable clothing & shoes that can get dirty, muddy, and possibly wet if you chose to go in the mud or water. Wear long pants, thick-sole & closed toe sturdy shoes for safety (no flipflops/sandals). Wear a hat, sunglasses for eye protection, and sunscreen. It will warm up quickly as you start to move around.

If you have water shoes, waders, or an old pair of shoes, this would be a great time to use them.

What to bring: please bring a reusable water bottle or hydration backpack, it's getting hot out & you need to stay hydrated. We will have water coolers full of ice water for you to refill your bottle or pack. We will provide gloves, bags, trash grabbers, & the dumpster. You are welcome to bring your own gloves & grabbers if you have them. If you would prefer to use a bucket, you're welcome to bring a bucket for trash but you will need to walk it to the designated dumpster each time it's full & having it in a bag will keep trash from blowing out of the dumpster. Put masking tape with your name & number on any tools you bring.

Adult volunteers, bring a pocketknife with you if you have one to help get clothing and sheets may be caught in the vegetation.

*If you have any allergies that you carry an epi-pen and antihistamines for, please do not forget to bring them with you. This is a wilderness area along the Lower Salt River so it’s best to prepare for anything.

Volunteers with kayaks & SUP’s: Bring your kayak or SUP to help us remove trash volunteers on foot cannot reach. There is not enough time to float the entire river & get back by 12pm when we wrap up with a raffle. Plan on staying at Phon D or if you plan to float from another rec site picking up trash along the way, make arrangements for your shuttle & make sure you have time to be back to Phon D by 12pm as we wrap up. Bring your Personal Flotation Device (PFD).

You can also rent equipment from these local companies that regularly support our mission & are helping support this event:

No Snow Stand Up Paddleboards: https://nosnowsup.com/index.html

Riverbound Sports: https://www.riverboundsports.com

Volunteers on foot: Once the safety briefing is done, everyone is going to spread out. You can stay at Phon D Sutton to explore the riverbanks & hiking trails, or drive up or down river to another recreation site if you have a favorite spot you want to clean or want to explore a new recreation site. We ask that anyone who leaves, bring all of their equipment back to Phon D & place their trash in our dedicated dumpster at Phon D.

You also can remove any invasive stinknet & cockleburs at Phon D Sutton. If you have allergies, we do not recommend this part of the event.

Snacks: We will have light snacks for volunteers, including apples & bananas. If you have any dietary restrictions, you may want to bring your own snack. You could bring a small cooler in your vehicle with cold beverages and snacks if you'd like.

Tonto Recreation Pass: You do NOT need one to participate in the event! If you plan to stay after the event, please purchase a Tonto Precreation Site. There is a kiosk at recreation areas along the river.

Bathrooms: There are vault toilets open to the public at recreation areas along the Lower Salt River including Phon D Sutton.

NR Merch: We will have Natural Restorations branded t-shirts, hats, stickers, and Tru Flasks available for a donation to help us raise funds for our Bush Fire Burn Scar Replanting Program on the Tonto National Forest. Natural Restorations is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Gilbert, Arizona and 100% of the proceeds go towards our Restoration Programs.

Groups: Please have your group leader email Nicole at [email protected] for a group sign-in sheet to save time the day of the event. The group leader can get everyone in their group signed in then one person can turn the sheets into us at the registration table.

Please register if you plan to participate so we can plan accordingly.

See you on Earth Day!

If you have any other questions, please click on the CONTACT button at the bottom of this page or email us at [email protected]

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