Adopt a Waterway

Are you someone who is passionate about the environment and loves getting involved within the community? Well Adopt-a-Waterway is a great place to start! The City of Pasadena has teamed up with volunteers creating an organization to help clean up a city that is surrounded by chemical plants. Individuals who are interested will be given a tour of the waterways and information on the area.

 All it takes is a few hours out of each month to assure the waters are clean from litter. The group will also do a sample of the water for any contamination. That's it! Volunteers can adopt as much as they want as well as they are provided with all the equipment they need. This program hopes to promote awareness and knowledge on how citizens can go about improving their community. 

This program wants people to get involved and take ownership in the waterways and to also help educate on how the dangers of one's mistakes can harm our environment. Such mistakes as washing cars with detergent that runs into the drains and gets into the bayou can contaminate the water. The more educated we are, the more we know and can pass our knowledge on to others.

 Incorporating Collaborative Service Learning is about teaching adults the importance of mixing education with experience. 
"Collaborative service learning combines the more traditionally recognized concept of volunteering with relevant higher learning objectives requiring applications and synthesis of knowledge gained from the learning experience (Kelly 82)". In other words, this is different than just any type of community service. The Collaborative Service Learning helps students receive credit for hands on understanding.

 I encourage anyone who wants to make a difference to come to the next Adopt-a-Waterway event on September 7, 2016, @ 8:30 a.m. We want to keep our community safe from harmful waste and preserve our animals in their natural habitats. Not only will you be helping the environment but it will make you feel good at giving back. It will also give you a sense of pride and accomplishment plus you will get to meet others who share your same interests!

 The waterway we will be observing runs from Center Street to Cunningham Drive. I recommend wearing comfortable sneakers as we will be walking along the banks picking up trash.

 We as a community should stand up and take pride in our city. Cleaning the waterways will help prevent backed up waste, preserve plants and animals, and clean up the pollution to have cleaner water for our ecosystem. Be an example, share the knowledge and get involved!