37th annual Great Texas River Clean Up set for Saturday

The 37th annual Great Texas River Clean Up takes place Saturday and the City of San Marcos, Texas State University and City of Kyle are asking for volunteers to take part. 

The event, which was originally started by the Texas River Protection Association to clean up the entire 90-mile stretch of the San Marcos River, also takes place around creeks and tributaries that flow into the San Marcos and Blanco rivers. 

“Going back to the pre-COVID event, I hope we are able to really target a couple of hot spots and get them cleaned up,” said Amy Thomaides, City of San Marcos Community Enhancement Initiatives Manager. “We have so many waterways in San Marcos that lead to the river, it’s hard to clean them through monthly Hot Spots.”

The clean up takes place Saturday between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. Anyone interested in participating in the upper San Marcos portion of the event, which includes Sewell Park to Stokes Park) can visit https://bit.ly/GTRCU2022Map and select one of the available watershed locations or contact Keep San Marcos Beautiful at 512-393-8419 or bmoore@sanmarcostx.gov. 

Anyone interested in taking part in the lower San Marcos River portion from Stokes Park to Guadalupe River should contact Tom Goynes at 512-787-5574 for more information. 

Watershed location and headquarters: 

•Purgatory Creek 1 — Gravel St and Mitchell St.

•Purgatory Creek 2 — 1808 Hunter Road

•Cottonwood Creek — Far N.W. Corner of Premium outlets behind Zegna Outlet

•Sessom Creek — 151-2 E. Sessom Dr. 

•Sink Creek — 1600 N. LBJ Dr.

•Willow Creek — 320 Mariposa St.

•San Marcos River 1 —170 Charles Austin Dr. 

•San Marcos River 2 — 520 N I-35 Frontage Road

•Plum Creek — 628 Abundance Lane

•Blanco River Village — Morning Shadow and Newberry Trl

•Five Mile Dam — 4440 S Old Stagecoach Road

•Blanco River and Hwy 80 — Bobcat Golf Range

Volunteers will check in at the watershed headquarters at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, sign in, meet with team leaders and receive supplies and instructions. According to a press release, volunteers will receive a breakfast taco and pizza for lunch. T-Shirts will be given out on a first come, first serve basis. 

Saturday’s event is sponsored by Texas River Protection Association, City of San Marcos, Keep San Marcos Beautiful, Habitat Conservation Plan, Texas State University and City of Kyle. Donors for the clean up include Alsco, Carson Properties, Clean Earth Systems, Edwards Aquifer Authority, Guadalupe Blanco River Authority, Greater San Marcos Partnership, H-E-B./Central Market, Honda San Marcos/David Cook, Jacob’s/CH2M, Keep Texas Beautiful, Print My Biz, RDO Equipment, San Marcos Area Chamber of Commerce, San Marcos Lions Club and Sur Powr Battery. 

In Kyle, 100 volunteer spots are available along the trails at Waterleaf Park, 628, Abundance Lane, the City of Kyle said. 

Volunteers will meet at Waterleaf Park at 8:30 a.m. for breakfast tacos and will be provided gloves, bags and a commemorative T-shirt, the city added.

Additionally, the city stated that volunteers should dress accordingly and wear close-toed shoes and bring a refillable water bottle. During the cleanup, volunteers will be asked to place filled trash bags as close to the trails as possible in order for Parks and Recreation Department Staff to easily and safely collect them.  

Pizza will also be provided to all volunteers at 11:30 a.m. at Waterleaf Park, the city said. 

To sign up for The Plum Creek area in Kyle, visit: https://bit.ly/SpringCleanUp2022_PlumCreek. For more information go to CityofKyle.com/GTRC.

The City of Kyle is encouraging volunteers to follow CDC recommendations for COVID-19.