River Cleanup Marks 25 Years of Saving the Rouge

Years ago, the Rouge River was seen as synonymous with a dump.

The 126-mile-long river that stretches through 48 Michigan municipalities was not known for its superb nature scenes or rapids for kayaking. Instead, people spoke about the fact that the Rouge caught on fire due to pollution in 1969, and that it was so trash-filled that some Dearborn residents could not open their windows due to the smell.

But things have changed–mostly due to the efforts of the Dearborn-based nonprofit , which has spent the past 25 years working toward one goal: making the Rouge a clean, sustainable habitat for wildlife and natural resource for Michiganders.

This Saturday marks the 25th annual Rouge Rescue, during which thousands of volunteers at more than 30 sites will take a few hours to pick up trash, plant native flowers and other greenery, and learn about why helping preserve the Rouge River is so important.

River Restoration Program Manager Cyndi Ross said the goals of the Rouge Rescue have changed drastically over the years.

“Things have improved in many cases because volunteers have gone to these sites year after year to clean up trash,” Ross said. “So aesthetically, I think the river is much more attractive because people have learned that it is a valuable natural resource in the community, so they’re not dumping trash like they used to do.

“A lot of the work now is more of the restoration work ... and trying to educate people about what they can do at home to try to protect water flowing into the river.”

These include simple things, like not draining car fluids or lawn chemicals into sewers, as well as picking up pet waste.

Efforts to save the Rouge are year-round for FOTR–and should be for residents of the cities the river runs through. But the Rouge Rescue provides a one-day chance to make a big impact.

“We have had as many as 3,000 volunteers and we average around 2,000 volunteers for the Rouge Rescue each year, so that’s a lot of hands,” Ross said. “It could not happen without that many people out there cleaning up the river. It makes a big difference.”

This Saturday, the Rouge Rescue will take place in Dearborn, Dearborn Heights, Detroit, Plymouth, Plymouth Township, Canton, Northville, Farmington, Farmington Hills, Beverly Hills, Birmingham, Livonia, Novi, Wayne, Westland, Southfield and Ypsilanti. A separate Redford event will take place June 11.

“Each site across the communities engages people in different ways across the watershed,” Ross said. “Years ago, some of the headwater communities didn’t realize that the river they were working on was part of the Rouge. So I think the more we’re involving people in the communities, we’re creating awareness that it is part of the Rouge.”

Everything should go off without a hitch–if water levels continue to drop after last week’s of almost every area of the Rouge. In Dearborn, Ford Field and the Henry Ford Estate were among the most heavily flooded areas. This Saturday, both are set to be Rouge Rescue sites.

Ford Field site coordinator Thomas Trimble said the flooding has changed the main objective of his group's Saturday cleanup.

"The flooding at Ford Field washed away a lot of the woodchip paths that run along the river and around the pond, so part of what we’re going to be doing on Saturday is working with the city to replace those," explained Trimble, a Dearborn resident and five-year Rouge Rescue coordinator. "That was not on our agenda before the flooding, but it certainly is now."

Ross said that as long as no more heavy rains hit, most sites should be OK to work on.

“It does alter some of the work plans for some of the sites," she said, "just because that sheer force of water that comes through there has really carried some of that debris downstream.”

But it’s nothing like the whole cars or pounds of trash groups used to pull out of the Rouge. And as the look of the river changes, so do attitudes toward it.

"(The Rouge) is a wonderful resource, and it’s a shame that it has been in the condition it’s been in over the past 20-30 years," Trimble reflected. "But I think it’s getting a lot better and it seems like a horrible resource to neglect."

And this Saturday, thousands of people will show that they care about the Rouge.

“I think 24 years of Rouge Rescue has helped shift (the stigma),” Ross added. “Some people still think of it as that open sewer, but more people now think of it as a natural resource, a place for recreation, a green space.

“When you change the appearance, you can change people’s attitudes.”

Rouge Rescue Sites in Dearborn

Greenway Trail

Date/Time: 9 a.m.-12 p.m. June 4
Location:
Directions: Registration is located at the east entrance of Ford Field on Brady Street, a half-mile north of Michigan Avenue.
Family Friendly: No
Volunteer Projects: Cleanup and invasive plant removal/weeding activities.
Volunteers Needed: All welcome
Coordinator: Thomas Trimble, -Dearborn
Contact: 313-414-6277; mars@americanmars.com

Henry Ford Estate

Date/Time: 9 a.m.-12 p.m. June 4
Location: Estate Grounds, 4901 Evergreen Road
Directions: Please enter the Henry Ford Estate grounds through the Fairlane Drive south gate (closest to Evergreen Road). Rouge Rescue participants will be allowed to park in Parking Lot G only during the Rough Rescue event at the Estate.
Family Friendly: Yes
Volunteer Projects: Trail garden maintenance, wildflower and native planting, nature walk/environmental education and possible historic Boathouse/Lily Pond area cleanup.
Volunteers Needed: 25
Coordinator: Karen Marzonie and Pamela Morrison, Henry Ford Estate
Contact: 313-593-5580; marzonie@umd.umich.edu

For a complete list of Rouge Rescue sites, click here.

Friends of the Rouge is holding a "25 Years, 25 Photos" contest, and accepting photo submissions until July 29. People are also encouraged to send in their stories about the Rouge.

For more information, visit their website.