Volunteer work is an important part of any society. By donating your time and effort toward a cause, perhaps collecting diapers on behalf of children's aid, you are telling the world that you care. You're also building connections in the community and doing something that makes you feel good about yourself. It's win win. If you're new to the Arlington, Virginia area and are looking to do some volunteer work, why not look into helping out during Clean the Bay Day?
Held every year on a Saturday morning in June, Clean the Bay Day is dedicated to removing debris and garbage, like old cable ties and potato chip wrappers, from Virginia's waterways, whether they be small or large, man made or natural, ocean or fresh water. It's a state wide initiative, so you can help out whether you live here in Arlington or elsewhere. There are thousands of miles of waterway, so the initiative needs all the help it can get. In 2009, over 7,000 people participated.
If you'd like to see some of what has already been achieved in past Clean the Bay Days, you can see photos and videos of the cleanup posted to the organization's Flickr group. If you already have participated and would like everyone to know that you have, you can buy posters, patches, and t-shirts at the online store. Perhaps they'll expand into bumper stickers and front license plate brackets in the future. Buying these items is also a great way to spread the word about the event. You can access these features online through the Chesapeake Bay Foundation at www.cbf.org.
To help out at the next Clean the Bay Day, simply register on the website. You need your parents' permission if you're underage. You can help in a number of ways: if you have a boat you can fish junk out of the water from it. You can collect garbage on foot. You can help set up the Toronto patio sets for the administration volunteers or volunteer to coordinate or gather data yourself.
Though removing cigarette butts, oil cans, paper, and old furniture from the water helps the ecosystem, there are some pollutants that can't be removed. To avoid having to use so many wastewater treatment chemicals on Virginia's water holdings, you can help out the initiative on any day of the year by not dumping harmful chemicals down the drain or outside where they can work their way into the water supply when they mingle with the rain.
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