Name: National Public Lands Day Lower Salt River Land & Water Cleanup
Start: 2023-09-23T08:00:00-07:00
End: 2023-09-23T11:00:00-07:00
Location: Lower Salt River at Phon D Sutton (GPS: 33.545795, -111.659794)

National Public Lands Day Lower Salt River Land & Water Cleanup

Natural Restorationsis a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded in early 2015 by husband and wife team, Justin & Nicole Corey.  Natural Restorations conserves land through action, impact, and education. Their  mission is to remove trash & graffiti from outdoor recreation & wilderness areas, revitalize natural areas through replanting projects, and enrich the lives of Military Veterans & other community members. They accomplish their mission by hosting volunteer cleanup events throughout the year for community members, including youth volunteers, and they manage & support a Dedicated Restoration Team with contracted Military Veterans who conduct restorations beyond the reach of most volunteers.They  have removed over 1 million pounds (575.95 tons) of trash from outdoor recreation and wilderness areas across Arizona & they have removed over 40,000 square feet of graffiti painted on rocks and boulders. They have also removed and recycled 1,047 tires dumped in natural areas. In November 2020, they launched a Replanting Program. To date, they have planted 22,030 trees in the Cactus Fire burn area at the Lower Salt River that is part of the Lower Salt River Restoration Project with Program Managers from the EcoCulture team at NAU and we recently began the first phase replanting in the Bush Fire scar area.

Natural Restorations

Join us for our 8th annual National Public Lands Day Cleanup! Make an immediate, visible impact on the Lower Salt River!

Lower Salt River at Phon D Sutton (GPS: 33.545795, -111.659794)

<h3>Join us for our 8th annual National Public Lands Day Lower Salt River Land &amp; Water Cleanup on Saturday, September 23rd!</h3><h3> We&#x27;re teaming up with AVNET, the U.S. Forest Service Tonto National Forest, &amp; NEEF to celebrate the nation&#x27;s largest, single-day volunteer event for public lands! This is also the 30th anniversary of National Public Lands Day!</h3>Everyone is welcome, including youth volunteers when they are accompanied &amp; supervised by a parent, guardian, or adult group leader. We would be happy to sign off on service hours or provide a Confirmation of Volunteer Service letter for youth volunteers. Sign-in: 7:30-8:00 a.m. | Safety Briefing: 8 a.m. | Cleanup starts: after safety briefingEnd time: 11:00 a.m. We will wrap up with a free volunteer raffle, volunteers will receive a raffle ticket when they sign-in. Must be present to win. We will be giving away prizes from PHX Adventure Adventure Co., REI Co-op, Tru Flask and NR merch.Please arrive before 8am so you can park and turn in your paperwork before the safety briefing starts at 8am. Volunteer Paperwork: We will email you volunteer paperwork this week. Please print the form, fill it out, and bring it with you to save time. We&#x27;ll have extras at sign-in. If you need it sooner, email Nicole at contact@naturalrestorations.orgEvent Staging Location: Phon D Sutton Recreation Area, Fort McDowell, ArizonaDirections: Everyone is meeting at Phon D Sutton Recreation Area in the large parking lot for sign-in, safety briefing, and game plan for the morning. When you arrive at Phon D, take the 2nd left into the second section of the first parking lot. Look for our signs and check out the screen shot from Google Maps below. Once you park, walk over to the shaded picnic area towards the back of the parking lot to turn in your volunteer paperwork at the green Natural Restorations tent. Plan your route ahead of time in case we are in a spot where we can’t get cell signal. GPS Coordinates: 33.545795, -111.659794***Do not use the EventBrite map to get there, it could send you to the wrong location. Use the GPS coordinates above to get to the event staging location***Plug the GPS coordinates above into your phone or mapping system, or search Phon D Sutton Recreation Area, Mesa, Arizona. Plan your route ahead of time in case we cannot take your call. Once the safety briefing is done, everyone is going to spread out. You can stay at Phon D Sutton or you can go up or down river to another recreation site if you are familiar with the area and have a favorite spot you want to clean or you want to explore a new recreation site. Volunteers on foot: volunteers can explore the trails and riverbanks at Phon D Sutton or head out to other recreation sites along the river. We do ask that you bring your trash back to the dedicated dumpster at Phon D so we can measure our impact with the dumpster weight. Volunteers with kayaks &amp; SUP’s: bring your kayak or SUP to help us remove trash that volunteers on foot cannot reach around Phon D or you can take a shuttle with Salt River Tubing after the safety briefing and head from Phon D up to Pebble Beach to float down the river picking up trash. You will need to be back at Phon D by 11am. Bring your Personal Flotation Device (PFD). What to wear: Check the forecast before you head out so you can be prepared &amp; dress accordingly. Please wear comfortable clothing &amp; shoes that can get dirty, muddy, and possibly wet if you choose to go in the mud or water. Wear long pants, thick-sole &amp; closed toe sturdy shoes for safety (no flip flops/sandals). Wear a hat, sunglasses for eye protection, and sunscreen. It will warm up quickly as you start to move around and it heats up. Wearing layers you can remove is helpful. What to bring: please bring a reusable water bottle or hydration backpack. We will have water coolers full of ice water for you to refill your bottle or pack. If you are floating down the river, ensure you have enough water for your entire trip. We will provide gloves, bags, trash grabbers, &amp; the dumpster. You are welcome to bring your own gloves &amp; grabbers if you have them. If you would prefer to use a bucket, you&#x27;re welcome to bring a bucket for trash but you will need to walk it to the designated dumpster each time it&#x27;s full and having it in a bag will keep trash from blowing out of the dumpster. Put masking tape with your name &amp; number on any tools you bring.*If you have any allergies that you carry an epi-pen and antihistamines for, please do not forget to bring them with you. This is a wilderness area along the Lower Salt River so it’s best to prepare for anything. If you have water shoes, waders, or an old pair of shoes, this would be a great time to use them. If you prefer to stay on dry land, that&#x27;s totally fine.Snacks: We will have light snacks for volunteers. If you have any dietary restrictions, you may want to bring your own snack. You could bring a small cooler in your vehicle with cold beverages and snacks if you&#x27;d like.Tonto Recreation Pass: You do NOT need one to participate in the event! If you plan to stay after the event, please purchase a Tonto Recreation Site. There is a kiosk at recreation areas along the river. We will keep you posted if it ends up being a fee-free day in celebration of National Public Lands Day. Bathrooms: There are vault toilets open to the public at recreation areas along the Lower Salt River. NR Merch: We will also have Natural Restorations branded t-shirts, hats, stickers, and Tru Flasks available for a donation. Natural Restorations is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Gilbert, Arizona and 100% of the proceeds go towards our Restoration Programs. Youth Groups: If you need youth registration paperwork ahead of time for parent/guardian signatures, please email Nicole at contact@naturalrestorations.org and we will email them over to you. Groups: Please have your group leader email Nicole at contact@naturalrestorations.org for a group sign-in sheet to save time the day of the event. The group leader can get everyone in their group signed in then one person can turn the sheets into us at the registration table. If you have any other questions, please click on the CONTACT button at the bottom of this page or email us at contact@naturalrestorations.org

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National Public Lands Day Lower Salt River Land & Water Cleanup

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