The CK Paddle & Clean took place on October 9, 2021.
This was an ‘Imagine McGregor’ event originally planned for the last weekend of September – postponed due to high water levels.
A total of 1,107.4 lbs. of litter was collected this past Saturday, at the Thamesgrove park in Chatham.
Lower Thames Valley Conservation Authority officials say participants gave back Thanksgiving weekend, paddling the Thames River and McGregor Creek, removing garbage along the way.
On shore, recyclables were sorted and the garbage was weighed.
The event ran from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and was a great success, LTVCA officials say.
The Sunrise Rotary was a huge help in making the day successful, with volunteers checking people in, and weighing and sorting garbage.
The club has made clean water a club priority since 2015, when they initiated the Clean Water for Living program (cleanwaterforliving.com).
Clean Water for Living asks everyone to step up their efforts to respect and protect local water.
The club is pleased to be a partner with the Lower Thames Valley Conservation Authority (LTVCA) on several projects, including the CK Paddle & Clean.
“I do believe that small positive acts by many people can transform the world,” said John Lawrence, Chair of Clean Water for Living, in a media release
“And CK Paddle & Clean is a good example, combining with thousands of similar projects occurring around the world on National River Cleanup Day.”
A goal of the ‘Imagine McGregor’ initiative is to bring community partners together to make events like these possible.
A number of local groups contributed to the success of CK Paddle & Clean.
In addition to the help from the Rotary Club of Chatham Sunrise volunteers, supporters from the Rotary Club of Chatham cleaned up the shoreline along McGregor Creek.
The Stronghouse Twin Dolphin Canada Corp. had volunteers come out and they donated funds to purchase hemp fabric t shirts for the participants.
These shirts were made locally in Chatham by Hereafter.
SignRageous donated the printing of the t-shirt design.
Participants collected garbage in mesh bags donated by Lloyd Bag Co. and used them to drag items behind their boats.
Water Hut provided the water refill station.
Finally, the garbage bin and subsequent collection was donated by Waste Connections of Canada.
