Special to the Times
Nearly 300 longtime and new volunteers came together on Saturday, April 26, to help rejuvenate the Emerald Necklace parks during the Emerald Necklace Conservancy’s 2025 Muddy River Cleanup.
Despite significant rainfall, over 3,600 pounds of garbage and invasive plants were removed that morning. The Muddy River Cleanup is part of the region-wide Charles River Cleanup, held annually in partnership with the Charles River Watershed Association, the Esplanade Association, the Charles River Conservancy and the Waltham Land Trust.
“We are so grateful to all the volunteers who turned out in the pounding rain to remove trash from the banks and surrounding the Muddy River, the central waterway of the Emerald Necklace,” Karen Mauney-Brodek, president of the Emerald Necklace Conservancy, said in a press release. “This annual cleanup is a cornerstone event in our ongoing mission to restore and improve the Emerald Necklace parks for all, and its continued success is proof that these parks matter to so many people. The Emerald Necklace is vital to our community in so many ways, and the Conservancy is committed to caring for it with tree care, advocacy, visitor amenities and events like this.”
The Muddy River Cleanup is one of many initiatives the Emerald Necklace Conservancy undertakes to care for the parks—alongside monthly ‘Second Saturdays’ stewardship events, weekly ‘Tuesdays with Roses’ volunteer activations in the Kelleher Rose Garden, educational programming for all ages, a public visitor center and a robust tree care program including pruning, planting and watering.
For more information on ways individuals and groups can volunteer and help maintain the health and improving the ecosystem of the Muddy River, visit www.emeraldnecklace.org/volunteer.