Riverkeepers Host Navesink Cleanup

Red Bank Riverkeepers are hosting a cleanup of the Navesink River this Saturday and are seeking volunteers to help man rowboats and pick up the assortment of trash that’s accumulated along the shoreline.

The annual cleanup is held at low tide and requires boat access to reach debris lodged into the muddy banks and shore. Red Bank Marina on Front Street has donated use of the boats for the cleanup. The marina is also the meeting point for the start of the cleanup.

Organizer Mary Jennings said the event yields some unique finds.

“We get the garbage that is impossible to get from the shore,” Jennings wrote in an email. “In the past we have removed some weird garbage. During low tide you could see a lot of garbage from shopping carts to refrigerators stuck in the mud and we remove them.”

In addition to benefiting the environment and aiding marine life, Jennings said the cleanup provides educational opportunities for the young volunteers participating in the cleanup. Kids learn, Jennings said, that when you liter, the trash often finds its way into the river.

Who: Riverkeeper Cleanup of the Navesink

Where: Red Bank Marina, 261 W. Front Street, Red Bank

When: Saturday 8am – 1pm

What: T-shirts, gloves and garbage bags will be supplied. Volunteers are asked to wear sneakers. No flip-flops permitted. After the cleanup, food and drinks will be served.

If you would like to volunteer or contribute contact: Mary Jennings at 732-778-9752.