Issue link: http://alabamapower.uberflip.com/i/240697
100% CONNECTED Renew Our Rivers celebrates 15th year with plans to grow next generation of environmental stewards In 2014, Renew Our Rivers is celebrating 15 years of cleanups by remembering the program's grassroots growth and announcing ways to engage the next generation in stewardship efforts. For 15 years, Alabama Power employees and community volunteers have made a remarkable impact on protecting waterways in their communities through the program. Matt Bowden, vice president of Environmental Affairs, said since the first community cleanups in 2000, Renew Our Rivers has engaged partners across the state – and in surrounding states – to remove more than 13 million pounds of trash from waterways across the Southeast. "Renew Our Rivers began with the vision of one Alabama Power employee who sought to improve the health and beauty of the Coosa River near Plant Gadsden where he worked," said Bowden. "It has now grown into a grassroots effort, drawing fresh support every year from thousands of volunteers across Alabama seeking to enhance their local waterways." Since removing a peak amount of nearly 2 million pounds from state waterways in 2005, subsequent cleanups and thousands of additional volunteers have resulted in gradually declining annual trash totals – demonstrating the impact of Renew Our Rivers and its volunteer partners. "Communities across our state are passionate about maintaining their waterways," said Doug Powell, who has helped volunteers coordinate cleanups with Alabama Power's stewardship team since the program began. "We have moved from regularly pulling refrigerators and freezers to smaller, but sometimes harder to collect, trash. "Today, we have to redouble our focus on teaching prevention to the next generation to continue expanding our impact," he said. Alabama Power's stewardship team has partnered with the Alabama Bass Trail's high school fishing series to help students get conservation hours required to qualify for grants. Students will get their first chance to gain hours at the Cleanup Classic on Lay Lake Jan. 18, where school fishing teams will compete to bring the most trash to the tournament weigh-in by noon. Alabama Power's stewardship team is hosting students for a fish habitat workshop this summer followed by habitat installations in the fall. Because of the Alabama Power Foundation's dedication to transforming and helping improve the quality of life in our state, it is launching "Students to Stewards," a new program this year to encourage conservation education, said Foundation President John Hudson. Through a competitive application process, Students to Stewards will provide support for dynamic stewardship and conservation projects that educate youths about the importance of the state's unique ecosystems – transforming them into better stewards of the environment. More information about Students to Stewards will be available when the program launches this spring. By Brandon Glover Renew Our Rivers - 2014 SCHEDULE Jan. 18 Lay Lake Cleanup Classic Contact: Kay Donaldson at 855-934-7425 April 14-19 Lay Lake (Coosa River) Contact: Judy Jones at 205-669-4865. Sept. 6 H. Neely Henry (Calhoun County) Contact: Haley Gregg at 256-237-3536. Feb. 15 Alabama River (Henry Lock and Dam to Pintlala Creek) Contact: John-Paul O'Driscoll at 334-358-6749 or Theodis Williams at 334-872-9554. April 18 Yates and Thurlow (Tallapoosa River) Contact: Joel Johnston at 334-283-1054. Sept. 12 Plant Miller (Locust Fork) Contact: Wesley Hicks at 205-438-1399. April 26 Lake Jordan (Coosa River) Contact: Barbara Dreyer at 334-567-7551 or email: lakejordanhobo.org. Sept. 18-20 Village Creek Contact: Mable Anderson at 205-798-0087. Feb. 22 Alabama River (lower) Contact: Jason Haynes at 334-682-4244. March 8 Lake Eufaula (Chattahoochee River) Contact: Brad Moore at 334-616-7888. April 29-May 1 Lake H. Neely Henry (Coosa River) Contact: Lisa Dover at 256-549-0900. March 15 Lake Seminole (Chattahoochee River) Contact: Melanie Rogers at 334-814-4673. May 9 Gorgas Steam Plant (Mulberry Fork) Contact: Bruce Williams at 205-668-2324 or Justin Brown at 205-686-2321. March 21-22 Logan Martin (Coosa River) Contact: Justin Hogeland at 205-516-4595. May 10 Weeks Bay Contact: Michael Shelton at 251-928-9792 or email Michael.shelton@dcnr.alabama.gov. March 29 Chattahoochee River (Gordon Boat Landing) Contact: Melanie Rogers at 334-814-4673. April 1-3 Plant Barry (Mobile River) Contact: David Griffin at 251-829-2736. April 5 Lay Lake at Gaston Steam Plant (Coosa River) Contact: Byron Corina at 205-669-8310. April 5 Cahaba River (upper) Contact: Kristen Self at 205-368-5516 email: kself@shelbyed.k12.al.us. April 12 Cahaba River (lower) Contact: Paula Fancher at pffancher@gmail.com. April 12 Lake Mitchell (Coosa River) Contact: Lee Poe at 205-389-2480 or Dale Vann at 205-979-5559 or 205-910-3713. 2 May 19-20 Smith Lake (Walker County) Contact: John Kubitskas at 205-384-5415. May 31 Bankhead Lake (Black Warrior River) PENDING Contact: Jason Ledbetter at 205-553-9373. June 6 Smith Lake (Cullman County) Contact: Eddie Hand at 256-287-1545. June 18-19 Smith Lake (Winston County) Contact: Allison Cochran at 205-489-5111. Aug. 9 Holt Lake (Black Warrior River) PENDING Contact: Jason Ledbetter at 205-553-9373. Aug. 9 Upper Tallapoosa River Contact: Lex Brown at 256-239-6399. Aug. 23 Valley Creek (Bessemer) Contact: Cleanup and registration details at www.jcdh.org/wpd. Sept. 19 Smith Lake (Cullman County) Contact: Eddie Hand at 256-287-1545. Oct. 9 Smith Lake (Winston County) Contact: David Brown at dwbrown35053@gmail.com. Oct. 10-11 Lake Demopolis Contact: Jennifer Cassity at 251-238-1921 or 334-289-6135. Oct.18 Lake Eufaula (Chattahoochee River) Contact: Brad Moore at 334-616-7888. Oct. 22-25 R.L. Harris (Tallapoosa River-Lake Wedowee) Contact: Marlin Glover at 770-445-0824 or Shelia Smith at 205-396-5093. Nov. 1 Lake Mitchell (Coosa River) Contact: Lee Poe at 205-389-2480 or Dale Vann at 205-979-5559 or 205-910-3713. Nov. 7-8 Lake Martin (Tallapoosa River) Contact: John Thompson at 334-323-7880 or Norm White at 256-307-1052 or 256-786-9560 or normwhite@rocketmail.com. Other cleanups pending: Weiss Lake Chattahoochee River (Phenix City-Columbus) Dog River