Rock River clean up challenge goes high tech on June 15-28
Wisconsin and Illinois residents can join the challenge using Litterati app!
It’s easy! Pick It & Click It!
Masks On, Litter Gone! The Rock River Trail and Rock River Coalition are partnering with River Network and Ball Corporation for a fun, interactive challenge that will help keep the Rock River basin and its communities clean. The “Rock River Basin – Ball Litter Haul” campaign, held June 15-28, 2020, encourages people to get outdoors and pick up trash, and then register their haul using a smart phone app called Litterati.
The Rock River watershed covers a wide area from Fond du Lac County in Wisconsin to Rock Island, Illinois where the Rock River meets the Mississippi River. The goal is to pick up 2,500 pieces of litter in the river basin during the 2 week challenge.
The Litterati app tracks the progress of the challenge using a leaderboard, with $50 gift cards awarded to the challenge leader of week one and week two. People will need to download the free app and create an account to participate. Using the Litterati app, they will then take a photo of the individual cans, wrappers, bottles and cups they find in the river basin to register the item. It is not necessary to be in the water to collect trash. In fact, trash can be collected in a wide radius of the Rock River and includes its tributaries, such as Turtle Creek, Pecatonica River, Bark River, and Yahara River.
This challenge offers a fun opportunity for people to get outdoors for exercise and fresh air, while making an impact on their local community. Participants are encouraged to wear masks and follow physical distancing guidelines. Sharing on social media is encouraged by using the campaign hashtag #MasksOnLitterGone .
It’s simple to join the challenge! Details are below!
Three Steps To Join The Challenge!
- Download the Litterati app and create an account – click here for Android and click here for iPhone
- Swipe over to “Challenges” and click “Join A Challenge With A Code” and enter the challenge code WI2020 to join our challenge.
- Or search for “Rock River Basin – Ball River Haul”.
During the event, we’ll have some other challenges that could win you more prizes!
Make sure you post to your social media accounts while you’re picking up litter and use the hashtags #MasksOnLitterGone and #BallLitterHaul.
Not sure how to use Litterati? You can learn how to use the app by watching these step-by-step videos from Litterati: https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PLm55ze–dTjWkzlUqLRNXhusPGsurX5VU&v=2pugOUsHIv4
Make sure to have “Litterati AI” toggled on in your settings so the app can track what you are picking up automatically. Please note at this time Litterati can only log one piece of litter per photo; you will need to log one photo per piece of trash.
Want to level up your litter removal? Check out this guide on how to make a DIY litter grabber tool! https://www.instructables.com/id/DIY-Assemble-a-DataGrabber-Tool-for-Efficient-Litt/
You can also view their FAQs if you have any questions: https://www.litterati.org/litterati-general-resources-faq
About The Rock River Basin – Ball Litter Haul Partners
The Rock River Trail is a 320-mile National Water Trail in Wisconsin and Illinois with a visitor center located at the half-way point in South Beloit, Illinois. In addition to the water trail, there are 10 other trails that have been created to explore the Rock River, such as a Scenic and Historic Trail, Chocolate Trail, Biking Trail, Craft Beer and Wine Trail.
The Rock River Coalition is a Wisconsin-based non-profit organization dedicated to preserving and improving Rock River Basin resources. They implement an award-winning stream monitoring program in which citizens are trained and supported to monitor the quality of their local streams. More information can be found at rockrivercoalition.org.
Since 1988, River Network has been at the forefront of expanding national interest in protecting the waters of our country, encouraging diversity in the environmental movement, and helping engaged community members and local organizations take a stand for their waters.