Event Encourages Residents To Enjoy The Oostanaula River

Staff Report

On July 27, the Coosa River Basin Initiative will give citizens a chance to beat the summer heat and join a global celebration of clean water — all courtesy of the Oostanaula River. 

CRBI’s Swimmable Water event will include a one-mile swim/float on the Oostanaula from Ridge Ferry Park to Heritage Park in downtown Rome. 

“This is not a canoe and kayak trip,” said Amos Tuck, CRBI program coordinator & riverkeeper. “We’ll be floating in the water on inner tubes or other floats or swimming the river. The idea is to get in the water and celebrate our rivers that are swimmable.”

The event is part of a larger international event organized by the Waterkeeper Alliance, of which CRBI is a member. The event encourages citizens across the globe to take a swim in their favorite outdoor swimming hole to celebrate clean water and to highlight the need to protect our world’s rivers, streams, lakes and oceans. 

Participants should bring life jackets, along with floatation devices. A limited number of life jackets will be available from CRBI at no charge. There is no fee to participate. 

In 2013, citizens in more than 20 countries participated in Swimmable Water Weekend events.

CRBI is also issuing a challenge to its members and supporters to share videos and photos of themselves enjoying their favorite swimming holes. 

Interested parties are encouraged to post videos and photos on social media using the hashtag: #swimmablewater and the tags Coosa River Basin Initiative and Waterkeeper Alliance.

To learn more and view a video of Riverkeeper Amos Tuck taking a plunge in the Etowah, visit http://youtu.be/dBqpb8iCpl4

CRBI is a 501c3 non profit organization and member of the international Waterkeeper Alliance. Its mission is to inform and empower citizens to protect, preserve and restore North America’s most biologically diverse river basin. 

For more information, contact Amos Tuck at 706-232-2724 or atuck@coosa.org.