The Hunterdon, Mercer, and Sussex Counties’ NJ Clean Communities programs collaborated with the Delaware River Greenway Partnership and the NJ Park Service for their eighth annual Delaware River cleanup. 

On Sept. 20, around 250 individuals volunteered their time to collect 350 bags of trash from along the river.  

Typical items like bottles, tires, takeout containers, diapers and construction debris were cleaned. 

However, unusual items like a jet ski, a boat, carpets, slippers, oil tanks, couches, mattresses and chairs were collected. A toilet bowl, an iPhone, a dumpster, car and engine parts, and a portable propane heater were also found. 

The cleanup spanned nearly twenty locations from the Delaware Water Gap to Duck Island in the Abbott Marshlands in Hamilton, New Jersey. 

On-water cleanup was conducted in Upper Black Eddy’s Giving Pond.  

“When volunteers join together to clean our waterways, they strengthen both our environment and communities. In addition to the amazing volunteers, we have leaders like Jenny O’Sullivan and Jimmy Wyrough, both Clean Community Coordinators. We are fortunate to have their help, and their hard work was recognized with awards at the 20th Annual NJ Clean Communities Award Ceremony,” said Kathy Klink, Cleanup Coordinator. 

The next annual cleanup of the Delaware River will take place on Sept. 19, 2026.  

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