Organizers are reminding residents that the seventh annual Klamath River Cleanup is scheduled for April 12 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Klamath.

The clean-up is a yearly effort to rid the Klamath River of illegally dumped trash or debris washed down the river by winter storms.

“The clean-up is a perfect way to beautify one of the most important watersheds in the Humboldt/Del Norte area before the tourist season hits full stride,” said Pam Kostka, a Yurok fisheries biologist and co-organizer of the event.

Participants should meet at the Yurok Tribal Headquarters off of U.S. Highway 101 in Klamath. Lunch following the clean-up will include Klamath steelhead and lamprey eel, a delicacy traditionally caught by Yurok.

To help fund the clean-up the Yurok Tribe is raffling off four cords of hardwood, which will be delivered for free.

Tickets are $10 each and only 25 tickets will be sold for each cord of firewood. The last day to buy tickets is April 11.

The tribe is also accepting donations to help fund the event.

To purchase raffle tickets or make a donation, contact the Yurok Tribal Office at 707-482-1350. Last year’s
clean-up removed 22 tons of trash, which is a key habitat for salmon, steelhead and sturgeon.

The money raised from the raffle will be used to purchase supplies, including bags, gloves and T-shirts for volunteers and food for the post clean-up luncheon.

The event’s co-sponsors — the Tribe’s Fisheries and Environmental Programs and the Americorps Watersheds Stewards Project — are providing the large machinery and transporting the trash to the Del Norte County Solid Waste Authority, which is helping with fees.

To pre-register for a specific T-shirt size, contact the Yurok Tribe before March 28. The T-shirts are free to all volunteers who pre-register.