‘It gets in your blood’: Volunteers passionate about Meramec River cleanup

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) - For its 58th year, a steady stream of volunteers poured into the parks around Kirkwood to clean up the Meramec River.

Since the 1960s, Missourians have been gathering each year to improve their waterways as part of Operation Clean Stream. Open Space STL has led the charge on one of the longest-running river restoration projects in the U.S.

Each August, volunteers gather along the tributaries of the Meramec to clean up damage caused by littering, flooding and illegal dumping. By working in both boats and along the shoreline, these folks work together to gather the garbage – hand it over to experts – who remove it from the riverbanks, according to Open Space STL .

If you’d like to volunteer, you can sign up for future clean-up operations at this link.