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Register for Clean the Bay Day! June 3rd

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Image: courtesy of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation

The registration for Clean the Bay Day is now live!

Every year Virginians all over the state join together to clean litter that jeopardizes the health of Chesapeake Bay. To participate in Clean the Bay Day on Saturday, June 3 register here. The earlier you register, the more choices you will have regarding cleanup sites. For groups, it is recommended you register early to ensure you can all be at the same location. This year we’re highlighting Zone Captains and their critical work helping Clean the Bay Day run smoothly.

 

The Foundation knows not everyone is able to join the volunteers for the main event, they are again offering a DIY option—
Clean the Bay Your Way—from June 4th through June 10th. Clean the Bay Your Way gives you the option of cleaning-up when you want with friends, family or by yourself! You’re able to conduct your own cleanup effort on smaller sites like your private property, school, workplace, or anywhere else you have permission. Learn more about our DIY option and register here!

Please let Lila know if you have any questions or run into any site issues. Thank you again for your interest in joining this huge volunteer event.

 

Lila Powell

Clean the Bay Day Intern

Chesapeake Bay Foundation

757-644-4122 / [email protected]

 

For Fairfax Master Naturalists the following clean up locations may be of interest:

Alexandria/City of Alexandria
Annandale/Friends of Accotink Creek

Lorton/Mason Neck State Park
Lorton/Mason Neck State Park Boaters

5th Annual Watershed Cleanup in April

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April 4, 5, 11 and 18th
9am – 12pm
Over 20 local parks—find one near you!

The Nature Conservancy is partnering with the Fairfax County Park Authority to host their Fifth Annual Watershed Cleanup at parks throughout Fairfax County. This spring cleaning will remove tires, plastic bottles, can and other debris from local waterways, preventing trash from reaching the nation’s largest estuary, the Chesapeake Bay. One thousand volunteers are needed!

Online registration is available starting March 16th.

Questions? Contact Holly Lafferty, AmeriCorps Volunteer Coordinator for The Nature Conservancy.

Chesapeake Bay Ecology trip, August 17-18, 2019

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Calvert County, MD
Saturday, August 17, 9:30 a.m.
Sunday, August 18, 11:00 a.m.

Fee: $95 Audubon Society of Northern Virginia members, $115 non-members, includes guided tour of Battle Creek Cypress Swamp, lunch on Saturday, admission at the Calvert Marine Museum, and a two-hour private charter on the Dee of St. Mary’s.

Group Limit: 15 participants.

The group will explore Calvert County, MD. They’ll meet at 9:30 a.m. at Battle Creek Cypress Swamp, where they’ll explore one of the northernmost naturally occurring bald cypress stands in North America. Then they’ll head to Solomon’s Island for a guided tour of the Calvert Marine Museum and private charter on the Dee of St. Mary’s, one of the few remaining skipjacks on the Chesapeake Bay. We finish our visit with an early Sunday morning visit to Calvert Cliffs State Park (state park fee $7/car), the site of astonishing quantities of prehistoric marine fossils. Although Calvert County is close by, it still seems remote and is a treasure to visit.

The Chesapeake Bay provides the ecological, cultural and historic foundation of our region. To understand the bay, its seasonal narration, complex history, and stewardship needs each of us should be grounded in this place. For over 150 years, our stewardship of the bay region has been disrespectful to the complex natural systems. Water quality, indigenous species, and even people living around the bay have suffered from the impacts of mistreatment. With increased public awareness, public policy has slowly changed, and some progress has been made. Join Dr. Tom Wood on this experiential learning weekend to explore this national treasure.

Dr. Wood is an Associate Professor of Integrative and Interdisciplinary Studies in the School of Integrative Studies at George Mason University. He conducted his doctoral research at the Smithsonian and helped create the Smithsonian-Mason Semester and directed the development of Mason’s joint program with the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute.

Hotel Reservations: A block of rooms has been reserved at the Holiday Inn Solomon’s Conference Center and Marina at a rate of $109 (not included with fee.) Please make your reservation no later than July 26. Group rate code will be included in the confirmation email sent from EventBee.

Register here.

Clean the Chesapeake Bay Day, June 1st

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Various locations
Saturday, 1 June 2019
9 am-12 pm

Each year, on the first Saturday of June, thousands of Virginians simultaneously descend on the rivers, streams, and beaches of the Chesapeake Bay watershed to remove harmful litter and debris. Thirty-one years strong, Clean the Bay Day is a true Virginian tradition and an annual opportunity for families, military installations, businesses, clubs, civic or church groups to give back to local waterways.

This short, three-hour annual event has a massive cumulative impact. Since 1989, Clean the Bay Day has engaged over 158,200 volunteers, who have removed approximately 6.64 million pounds of debris from nearly 7,750 miles of shoreline in Virginia!

Signing up for Clean the Bay Day is easy! Find a location convenient to you on our locations list or interactive map and register yourself or your group. Your information will be sent to the coordinator for that location, who will get back to you with details about your specific site. When you show up that day, just come prepared to help pick up litter and debris! All clean-up supplies will be provided.

Can’t make it on June 1st but want to help? Check out partners who are hosting their events earlier.