25th Anniversary of Friends of The Los Angeles River’s La Gran Limpieza: The Great Los Angeles River Clean-Up

Last weekend hundreds of volunteers, organized by Friends of the Los Angeles River, gathered at the banks of the Los Angeles River at sites from the Sepulveda Basin to Griffith Park, pulling shopping bags, shoes, and all kinds of debris from the soft-bottom riverbed and leaving behind a cleaner and healthier river for its human, animal and plant community.

“This day is an annual reminder of how a community can come together and transform a city,” said Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, who welcomed volunteers to the river before going into the riverbed in his own long sleeves and work gloves to look for trash. “By bringing us back to the river year after year to clean it and care for it, FoLAR has opened Angelenos’ eyes to a wonder hidden in plain sight.”

Col. Kimberley Colloton, Commander and District Engineer of the Los Angeles District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, joined the cleanup with volunteer Corps members and their families. “The men and women of the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers have a longstanding commitment to the Los Angeles River,” she said. “We’re proud to be a part of this annual event and to be partners with the city and FoLAR. We all have a responsibility to be good stewards of our environment and to protect the benefits that this river provides. Together we can do great things.”

Simply by showing up, clean-up volunteers joined one of the biggest urban environmental transformations underway in the entire United States. FoLAR began the River Clean-up as a way to improve the health and habitat of the river as well as to help residents connect to one of the city’s underappreciated natural treasures. “Twenty-five years ago, I called for 10,000 people to show up,” said Lewis MacAdams, president and co-founder of FoLAR. “About ten did. But it’s continued to grow and grow.”

-Courtesy Photo

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