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April 21, 2021 Tennessee RiverLine Community Marks Milestone for Tennessee RiverTowns Program

The Tennessee RiverLine, America鈥檚 next great regional trail system, marks a milestone on May 1, 2021, with a river stewardship event hosted by Clifton, Tenn., and supported by multiple partner organizations. This event is the first official public event to be hosted by a river community that is participating in the Tennessee RiverLine鈥檚 Tennessee RiverTowns Program.

The public is invited to participate in Clifton鈥檚 Tennessee River cleanup and celebration, beginning at the Clifton Marina and RV Park at 10 a.m. To participate, .

graphic image of boat wheel with words

Throughout the day, Clifton residents, volunteers and community leaders will remove trash from multiple locations in the Clifton and Wayne County area with support from team members of Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful (KTNRB), the Wayne County Beautification Project, and the Tennessee RiverLine. Some participants will clean from the shoreline, while others will remove trash from the river in KTNRB鈥檚 25-foot work boat and other personal watercraft.

鈥淭he Tennessee River is extremely vital to our community,鈥 said Mark Staggs, mayor of Clifton. 鈥淚t provides us with the water that we drink, the fish that we eat, the water we use to irrigate our crops and the water that we use to raise our livestock.聽 It brings tourists to our community through numerous outdoor recreational activities which in turn stimulates our local economy and helps us grow as a Tennessee RiverLine destination. I cannot overemphasize how important it is that we keep this waterway clean and free of litter and debris not only for ourselves but also our children and grandchildren for generations to come.聽The bottom line is that we either take care of the river and enjoy all of its lifelong benefits or we lose it forever and destroy our river way of life, pure and simple.鈥

The event was inspired by residents鈥 participation in KTNRB鈥檚 Adopt-A-River-Mile program. After being challenged by local river champion, Cereice Morris, Clifton-area residents responded by adopting more than 40 miles of shoreline.

Building on this enthusiasm, the event also aligns with the Tennessee RiverLine鈥檚 commitment to inspire new generations of Tennessee River stewards.

pink sunset over Tennessee River

鈥淭hrough the Tennessee RiverTowns Program, 15 river communities, including Clifton, have made a commitment to raise awareness of the importance of the Tennessee River and to be active stewards of its health,鈥 said Brad Collett, UT Associate Professor and Director of the Tennessee RiverLine. 鈥淲e鈥檙e thrilled to see this commitment put into action through such robust collaboration in Clifton.鈥

With principal partners University of Tennessee, 快活视频, and Tennessee Valley Authority, the Tennessee RiverLine is a vision for a 652-mile system of paddle-hike-bike trail experiences along the Tennessee River. The initiative transforms the way Tennessee River communities and more than 2.4 million residents relate to, experience and care for the river.

Each year, communities in the Tennessee RiverTowns Program will work with local partners to host one or more Tennessee River stewardship events to give residents an opportunity to learn about the challenges posed to the health of the river, such as micro plastics pollution, shoreline erosion and invasive species, and actively participate in addressing those challenges.

鈥淭his growing network of river stewards and invested partners will help ensure that all will be able to experience a healthy Tennessee River鈥攐ur region鈥檚 most valuable natural and cultural resource鈥攆or generations to come,鈥 said Collett.

Participants of the cleanup event in Clifton are asked to bring face coverings, bottled water, close-toed shoes and long pants. Health and safety protocols related to the COVID-19 pandemic will be observed. Trash will be placed in dumpsters provided by Wayne County and the Wayne County Beautification Project, which also will recycle all collected tires.

The Tennessee RiverLine is North America鈥檚 next great regional trail system, a historic multi-generational initiative that offers economic development, public health, equitable access and environmental stewardship benefits to 2.4 million people in diverse Tennessee River communities in four states. The Tennessee RiverLine is led by the UT School of Landscape Architecture and principal partners, UT 快活视频, and TVA, in collaboration with the Tennessee RiverLine Partnership, a diverse consortium of organizations committed to realizing the vision for the Tennessee RiverLine.

Registration for the 2022 cohort of Tennessee RiverTowns Program will open in summer 2021. Tennessee River communities interested in becoming a part of the Tennessee RiverLine by enrolling in the program can visit .

For more information about the Tennessee RiverLine and other upcoming Tennessee RiverTowns community events, visit .

Keep the Tennessee River Beautiful, led by Executive Director Kathleen Gibi, is the first affiliate of Keep America Beautiful to focus solely on a river. For more information about KTNRB, visit .