SACRAMENTO, Calif. (CN) – Traversing through the snowcapped Sierra Nevada, the American River gushes downstream over 100 miles before draining into the Sacramento River – one of the nation’s longest. Renowned as the site of California’s Gold Rush, the American is a critical component of the Golden State’s most vital but dwindling resource: water.
The American and a host of other rivers are largely responsible for quenching the thirst of nearly 40 million Californians and the health of the most fertile and lucrative agricultural region in the United States. But the river systems and groundwater supplies have borne the brunt of California’s exponential growth over the last several decades.
After centuries of human impact, outdated wastewater technology and overuse, California’s rivers harbor a dirty secret.
On an overcast Saturday morning, nearly 300 volunteers and aspiring environmentalists gathered near the American River in Sacramento to give a 20-mile stretch of the river a spring cleaning. Event coordinators handed out trash bags and directed volunteers to hike through the parkway in search of trash and abandoned homeless camps scattered in the foliage along the banks.
“Please don’t go into active camps, be aware of needles and avoid rubbing your eyes out there,” coordinators with the American River Parkway Foundation repeated to first-time volunteers.
Just five miles from the state Capitol, the urban stretch of river is a hotspot for the region’s growing homeless population. According to Sacramento County’s most recent data, nearly 2,700 homeless individuals were counted on a single night in 2015.
Makeshift camps and temporary structures dot the American River’s banks near its confluence with the Sacramento River in downtown Sacramento. The volunteers, consisting of local families, students and environmentalists, collected over 4,400 pounds of trash from the river and its banks in just a three-hour span.
“Oh God, we’ve found the mother lode,” shouted volunteer Rick Codina of Sacramento.
Codina had wandered into a recently vacated camp under a grove of thick trees and roots that was littered with empty food containers and old clothing. Ashes smoldered inside the makeshift lean-to’s fire pit as Codina quickly filled up two 13-gallon trash bags.
“The homeless situation has really gotten worse,” Codina, who has used the parkway for recreation for over 30 years, said.
The foundation holds monthly American River cleanups and two larger events each year. The goal is to improve conditions for the river’s wildlife, protect water quality and instill conservation practices in young people. The cleanups are funded largely through donations with minor contributions from the city and county, according to parkway volunteer coordinator Jordan Powell.
Powell said people living outside of Northern California “might be surprised” to learn that volunteers regularly pull thousands of pounds of trash from one of the California’s cleanest and most scenic rivers.
“We struggle with the same problems as other states,” Powell said. “Litter is a nationwide issue.”
Last year, state lawmakers passed a bill that would make the American River Parkway eligible for more conservation funding. Over the last several years, the parkway has been plagued by not just trash from illegal camps, but grass fires sparked by arsonists.
Assemblyman Kevin McCarty called the parkway “the jewel” of Sacramento.