2024 Great Slough Cleanup Success!

Annually, the Columbia Slough Watershed Council gathers volunteers, community partners, local businesses and more for the Great Slough Cleanup, a watershed wide trash cleanup event. This year, we were joined by 55 outstanding and dedicated volunteers between two different work sites - one on land at the 143rd cross levee and the other on water at NE Glassplant Rd & NE Alderwood Rd near Johnson Lake. With such a fantastic community turnout, we were able to have over 22 cubic yards of trash removed, including 9 tires!

Volunteer Rick’s recycling haul - thank you Rick!

This year we are excited to give a huge shout out to community member Rick! He worked with the land crew on the levee to remove trash and took it upon himself to remove plastic, metal, and other recyclables from the pile that otherwise would have been headed for the landfill. Rick filled his truck bed and delivered these items to a local facility that takes recyclable items that curbside cannot take. Thank you Rick for going above and beyond for the environment!

After the event, we celebrated at our local favorite, Level Beer. Here we shared success stories and issued our annual Golden Picker Award to a stand out community member. This year we recognized two individuals - Steve Cameron, and one to Jackie Lang. Steve has been a long time Watershed Council volunteer, built and continues to help maintain our bimaran boards that make our paddle programming possible, and built the bimaran platforms that we use at cleanups. You'll see him at just about every cleanup we host with his partner Melina - thank you Steve! Jackie, a new volunteer and employee at Waste Management, encouraged her co-workers to come out for the event, was the last one out cleaning, and was such a community leader throughout the event. We cannot wait to work with you again!

The trash cleanup program continues to be a community favorite. Whether we are working on land, or take to the water with canoes and kayaks, we love to support a healthier ecosystem with the support of the community. We will continue hosting once a month cleanup events throughout the Watershed, and would love to see you there. Visit our event calendar for more details.

This work would not be possible without the financial support of Metro, Bureau of Environmental Services, East Multnomah Soil and Water Conservation District, and the Oregon State Marine Board.

Are you a business looking to get your staff more involved in community work? Or interested in becoming a sponsor? Reach out to Event Director Amanda at, amanda.gallegos@columbiaslough.org.