For 25 years generous donors, like you, have made Clean Your Streams Day possible. Every cent, every dollar, donated to Clean Your Streams Day has been put to work removing over 360,000 pounds of trash in the last 25 years. We need your help to make this year impactful. We ask that you help celebrate the 25th anniversary of Clean Your Streams by donating $25, $250, or $2,500 (as a sponsor); every donation makes a tangible difference!

Donate on our website or by contacting us directly. Help us make the 25th anniversary the best year yet by soliciting donations and sponsorships in your family network, workplace, or organizations, and spreading the news about how much we need to remove trash from our waterways.

Mark your calendars for the Silver Anniversary of Clean Your Streams Day! Since 1997, the number of volunteers on Clean Your Streams Day has grown each year and the support for this event has gotten stronger and stronger. The 25th Anniversary of Clean Your Streams will be happening the week of September 18th- September 25th, with the main celebration happening on September 25th. There will be an in-person clean-up on September 25th with usual kick-off locations. But if you cannot make the September 25th, we are offering "remote" do it on-your-own time clean-ups beforehand. Both "remote" and in-person volunteers will be invited to a special Clean Your Stream 25th Anniversary picnic on September 25th to celebrate and reflect on their amazing impact on our waterways.

Stay tuned for more details on our website, including the opening of registration in mid-August.

The City of Toledo is leading a new project through U.S EPA’s Trash Free Waters program to collect potential marine trash and install trash capture devices in the water at several locations near Toledo. The City has recruited a team of community organizations, including TMACOG, University of Toledo, Keep Toledo/Lucas County Beautiful, and us- Partners for Clean Streams! We are excited to provide outreach and clean-ups alongside these trash trappers.   (Read More)

City of Toledo Senior Environmental Scientist, Edith Kippenhan, is managing the program. She said, “A trash capture device is generally a floating box with booms that guides the trash into the box as the water moves it downstream. The devices can be small or large, skinny or wide.” Approximately nine trash trappers will be installed around the Toledo area to grab trash in the waters.

The team hopes to install nine boxes or nets at locations representing different land uses: industrial, commercial, recreation/tourism, and residential. Locations will include the Ottawa River, Maumee River, and Swan Creek where it flows into the Maumee in downtown Toledo. 

Sign-up for a community stream clean-up, called CYS 365, near the trash trappers here, and check out more about the trash trappers here.

Research has shown that microplastics can cause physical harm to wildlife when ingested. Microplastics can absorb other chemicals such as trace metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, pesticides, and some pathogens. Initial research has also suggested that plastic additives can contribute to disruption in the endocrine system and possibly cancer. Currently, there are four types categorized by the USGS: fibers, foam, fragments, beads/pellets, and film.

Films are more common to find than you might think! Films are a type of microplastics that are from items such as plastic bags, food wrappers, and plastic packaging wrap breaking down in our water supply. You can help reduce the films in our waterways by:

• Using reusable bags
• Secure plastic films in trash cans- they can fly away any chance they get
• Use reusable produce bags

or come to a clean-up with us to remove trash from our waterways before it becomes microplastics!