About 150 volunteers cleared 335 kilograms of trash from the Bitterroot River on August 10 as part of a community cleanup organized by the Bitterroot Water Partnership.

The cleanup crew covered 100 miles of river and collectively removed “car doors, bumpers, tires and other large metal fragments, shoes and a toilet seat, countless cans and plastic trash, an old safe, barbed wire, netting and much more” from the West Fork, Main Stem and East Fork, a press release said.

“This was my first time participating in a Bitterroot Clean Up and I’m already looking forward to next year!” said Alezaundro Graziano, a 12th grader at Hamilton High School, in the press release.

Following the cleanup, around 70 volunteers headed to Naps Bar and Grill in Hamilton for a celebratory lunch.

“While we still clean hundreds, even thousands of pounds of trash from the Bitterroot each year, long-time volunteers will tell you that it is much cleaner today than it was 10 or 15 years ago. This accomplishment is certainly due to the efforts of countless River Clean Up volunteers and other river lovers who clean up trash whenever they find it,” said Alex Ocañas, a community engagement coordinator with the Bitterroot Water Partnership.

Ocañas said the partnership has seen a “record level of participation” from volunteers this year, a clear sign of the “great respect and care for our beautiful Bitterroot River.”