Rio Reimagined Celebrates Earth Day with Salt River Community Clean-Up

Rio Reimagined, in partnership with Arizona State University, the City of Phoenix and the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, is hosting a day-long community clean-up at the Salt River on Saturday, April 24 in honor of Earth Day. Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego and District 7 Councilmember Yassamin Ansari will give welcoming remarks at 9:00 a.m. before the first volunteers embark on a 2.5 hour clean-up along the Salt River. A second shift of volunteers will deploy at 1:00 p.m.

The clean-up location, west of 91st Avenue and the Salt River and adjacent to the renowned Tres Rios Wetlands, is the site of illegal dumping. The clean-up will offer the community an opportunity to beautify the site and directly contribute to the revitalization of the Salt River. The event will adhere to all CDC-recommended COVID-19 guidelines, including face coverings and physical distancing.

The April 24 clean-up caps off a week of Earth Day activities hosted by Rio Reimagined and its partners, including virtual community clean-ups made possible through the Litterati Citizen Science app. Additional support for the clean-up comes from the Ball Corporation, River Network, Waste Management, Arizona Forward, Keep Phoenix Beautiful and Corazon Latino.

Saturday, April 24, 2021; 9:00 a.m. MST

West side of south 91st Avenue in the Salt River bed, adjacent to the Tres Rios Wetlands and 1.25 miles south of Broadway Road

At the request of the late U.S. Senator John McCain in 2017, Arizona State University is currently serving as a community convener of Rio Reimagined, a long-term river revitalization initiative spanning the Valley. Initial work has focused on precedent project studies and early collaboration of public agencies and tribal nations within the urban corridor. Rio Reimagined was officially recognized as the 20th location of the Urban Waters Federal Partnership in 2020.  While ASU has provided financial and organizational resources to begin the initiative, the design, priorities and outcomes of Rio Reimagined will be determined by the Valley communities along the river corridor.

Arizona State University has developed a new model for the American Research University, creating an institution that is committed to access, excellence and impact. ASU measures itself by those it includes, not by those it excludes. As the prototype for a New American University, ASU pursues research that contributes to the public good, and ASU assumes major responsibility for the economic, social and cultural vitality of the communities that surround it.