SHORELINES

24 a p c s hor e l i n e s.c om | 2016 Vol :4 says the Gadsden native. "It was out of control. When you think about what the river means to the city from an environmental and economic standpoint, it didn't look good. It was a daunting task because there was so much trash and no one was doing anything about it. Why not me? Somebody had to do something." Phifer went to work, rallying the support of the plant manager at the time, employees at the facility and the Alabama Power Service Organization (APSO)-Plant Gadsden Chapter. The cleanup was appropriately called Renew the Coosa. It was later renamed Renew Our Rivers after the concept began spreading to other Alabama waterways. "I had a lot of good responses from people at the plant wanting to know, 'What can I do? How can I help?'" Phifer says. He and his co-workers knew they had to start small. During July and August 1999, they picked up trash and debris on the riverbank near the plant after work. They made multiple trips, loading their boats with anything they found floating in the water or lodged along the shore. Phifer dreamed of removing trash all the way from Plant Gadsden to Neely Henry Dam. But he realized plant employees could not do it alone. That's when Phifer turned to the community. In January 2000, he hosted a huge meeting at Gadsden City Hall where he pitched his plan to community leaders, including Keep Etowah Beautiful, the local chambers of commerce, the schools, the media, area businesses and civic organizations. The mayors and other officials from Gadsden, Rainbow City, Southside and Attalla were also on hand. "This kind of cleanup had never been done before with so many segments coming together," says Phifer. "People were fed up and tired of the river not being taken care of. The group synergy and enthusiasm were tremendous." Under Phifer's guiding hand, representatives from Alabama Power and community leaders met weekly to develop the timeline, devise a workable plan and organize the logistics of the cleanup. The biggest decision, Phifer said, was where to pile the debris during the seven-day event, set to take place at the end of April. "We came up with the idea of putting it in the amphitheater parking lot across from Gadsden City Hall," Phifer said. "Some people said we shouldn't draw so much attention. But it was symbolic. We were showing the city of Gadsden, 'Look what we are doing to our river.'" At the end of the weeklong cleanup, there was a "mountain" of garbage and debris in the parking lot, Phifer said, with more than 500 volunteers bringing in about 14 tons of trash. "To me, the hardest part of that cleanup was the coordination: How do you take care of that many people from a safety standpoint?" says Phifer. "It would have been chaos without help from the sheriff and police "BECAUSE OF THE PASSION GENE HAS FOR HIS COMMUNITY AND FOR MAKING A DIFFERENCE, THIS PROGRAM HAS BEEN VERY SUCCESSFUL IN ETOWAH COUNTY. HE'S A TREMENDOUS HELP TO ME BECAUSE I KNOW IF SOMETHING COMES UP ON THE RIVER, ALL I HAVE TO DO IS CALL HIM, AND HE TAKES CARE OF IT." – K EEP E TOWA H BE A U T IFUL E X E CU T I V E D IR E C TO R L IS A D OV ER , O N A L A B A M A P OW ER R E T IR EE GENE P HIFER .

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