Group of People Cleaning Up Rocks Near Ocean

Cleaning up Communities: A Guide to State-by-state Cleanups

March 2nd, 2023

Reading time: 3 minutes

Authored by Brad Marley

Being involved in your local community is an important endeavor to pursue if you want to improve the quality of life where you live and work.

At Brightmark, we encourage all of our employees to volunteer and seek ways in which they can make the world a better place for all as we work together to Reimagine Waste.

No matter where you live or work, there are organizations that exist to help you show appreciation for your environment.

We’ve compiled a list of 50 organizations—one in each state—that are dedicated to keeping our environment waste-free, and each organization is looking for more people to get involved.

We hope one of these organizations resonates with you and that you can find a way to lend your resources, time, or any other special talents you may have to help us create a world without waste.

When you do decide to volunteer for cleanups, don’t forget to download our Coastal Cleanup Guide or Trash Tracker. These resources are created for you to gain an understanding of the waste you’re collecting and encourage your favorite brands to create environmentally conscious products that reduce the amount of trash that seeps into the environment.

Check out the list of organizations focused on cleanups below.

Alabama

Alabama People Against A Littered State (ALPALS)
https://www.alpals.org/

Alaska

Gulf of Alaska Keeper
www.Goak.org

Colorado

Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado
https://www.voc.org/

Connecticut

Save the Sound
https://www.savethesound.org/

Delaware

Keep Delaware Beautiful
https://keepdelawarebeautiful.com/

Florida

Keep Florida Beautiful
https://keepfloridabeautiful.org/

Georgia

Rivers Alive

https://riversalive.georgia.gov/

Hawaii

808 Cleanups
https://808cleanups.org/

Idaho

Boise River Enhancement Network
https://www.boiseriverenhancement.org/

Illinois

Illinois River Watershed Partnership
https://www.irwp.org/events/3rd-annual-illinois-river-cleanup

Indiana

Keep Indianapolis Beautiful
https://www.kibi.org/

Iowa

Iowa Project A.W.A.R.E.
https://www.iowaprojectaware.org/

Kansas

Great Kansas City Cleanup
https://www.kcmo.gov/programs-initiatives/cleanup

Kentucky

Kentucky Waterways Alliance
https://www.kwalliance.org/cleanups.html

Louisiana

Keep Louisiana Beautiful
https://keeplouisianabeautiful.org/

Maine

Friends of Casco Bay
https://www.cascobay.org/

Maryland

Trash Free Maryland
https://www.trashfreemaryland.org/

Massachusetts

COASTSWEEP
https://www.mass.gov/coastsweep

Michigan

Friends of the Rouge
https://therouge.org/rouge-rescue/

Minnesota

CURE (Clean Up The River Environment)
https://www.cureriver.org/

Mississippi

Mississippi Coastal Cleanup Program
http://coastalcleanup.extension.msstate.edu/

Missouri

Missouri River Relief
https://riverrelief.org/

Montana

Yellowstone River Cleanup
http://yellowstoneriver.weebly.com/yellowstone-river-cleanup.html

Nebraska

Keep Nebraska Beautiful
https://www.knb.org/

Nevada

Friends of Nevada Wilderness
https://www.nevadawilderness.org/

New Hampshire

Blue Ocean Society for Marine Conservation
https://www.blueoceansociety.org/

New Jersey

New Jersey Clean Communities
https://www.njclean.org/our-programs/adopt-a-beach/overview

New Mexico

Keep New Mexico Clean
https://www.newmexico.org/waterways/

New York

Long Beach Cleanup
http://www.lbcleanup.com/

North Carolina

North Carolina Coastal Federation
https://www.nccoast.org/

North Dakota

Friends of the Souris
https://www.friendsofthesouris.com/about/

Ohio

Clean Sweep of the Great Miami River
https://www.cleansweepofthegreatmiamiriver.org/

Oklahoma

OKC Beautiful
https://www.okcbeautiful.com/

Oregon

Solve Oregon
https://www.solveoregon.org/

Pennsylvania

POWR (Pennsylvania Organization for Watersheds & Rivers)
https://pawatersheds.org/

Rhode Island

Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council
https://wrwc.org/wp/

South Carolina

Congaree Riverkeeper
https://www.congareeriverkeeper.org/

South Dakota

Friends of the Big Sioux River
https://www.friendsofthebigsiouxriver.org/

Tennessee

Keep The Tennessee River Beautiful
https://www.keeptnriverbeautiful.org/

Texas

Keep Texas Beaches Clean
https://texasadoptabeach.org/

Utah

Utah Clean Water Partnership
https://www.utahcleanwater.org/

Vermont

Watersheds United Vermont
https://watershedsunitedvt.org/

Virginia

Friends of the Rappahannock
https://riverfriends.org/

Washington

Washington CoastSavers
https://www.coastsavers.org/

West Virginia

WV Make It Shine Program
https://dep.wv.gov/environmental-advocate/reap/wvmis/Pages/default.aspx

Wisconsin

Protect Wisconsin Waterways
https://protectwiwaterways.org/

Wyoming

Platte River Revival
https://www.casperwy.gov/residents/environment_and_waste/platte_river_revival

Brad Marley

Copywriter

Brad is a lifelong storyteller who helps companies find their single source of truth. He works with brands in tech and sustainability to identify their most impactful narratives and ensure that messaging is weaved throughout their storytelling efforts. Brad brings more than 20 years of storytelling experience to bear as he helps Brightmark make its mark.