This year’s Yuba River Cleanup Day was supposed to be a special one, but this wasn’t quite what the South Yuba River Citizens League had in mind. SYRCL was celebrating their 20th annual cleanup, but found themselves dealing with a health advisory after the river mysteriously turned yellow. Community Engagement Manager Daniel Belshe says they were still able to have the cleanup anyway…

They had over 900 volunteers and picked up a record 18-thousand pounds of trash at 35 sites in and around the river without actually going in the water. Belshe says the haul included nine refrigerators, 62 tires, four or five couches, and a couple of TVs. Despite a serious goal of protecting the watershed, Belshe says they make the event fun…

The historical find was a 1939 license plate. The health advisory on the South Yuba has since been lifted.

–gf