Make Your Impact on the French Broad River!
Public Volunteer Events
So you’re looking to get involved and help out the French Broad River and it’s watershed, well you’ve come to the right place! Throughout the year RiverLink hosts many volunteer events that are open to anyone who wants to help out. There’s no experience needed for these events, just a love of the river and a desire to make an impact.
Traditionally we host these events once a month on a weekend, but have paused them during Covid. We’re hoping to start hosting these again in June as more people get vaccinated. Check back on this page to signup for these opportunities when they become available.
Other Ways to Get Involved
Volunteer Groups
If you’ve got a group of friends, family, or coworkers looking to volunteer we’d love to help you make an impact on your community! We often work with church groups, schools and local businesses to organize private service days. We’ll find a date and time that works for your schedule and a project that fits your groups abilities. It doesn’t matter if you’re new to the environmental scene, or a seasoned veteran, there’s always a way that you can lend a hand.
Adopt-A-Storm Drain
RiverLink is partnering with the City of Asheville and local volunteers to protect water quality through an Adopt-A-Storm Drain Program. Pollution from stormwater runoff is the biggest threat to clean water in our urban streams. By helping to maintain a local storm drain you can keep trash out of our streams and help prevent flooding.
Join the KC Park Work Crew
We’re looking for a team of dedicated volunteers to commit to monthly service days at the site of the future Karen Cragnolin Park. Volunteers will work outside at a safe social distance to remove invasive species. We will be working in groups of 15 or less and wearing masks to ensure the safety of everyone involved.
If you are interested in helping you can contact the project Coordinator Sarah Clement at sarah@riverlink.org
Cleanup Supply Check-Out
If you’re just looking to clean a stream or roadside on your own or with a couple friends or family we can help gear you up. We have gloves, trash bags, safety vests, and trash grabbers that we can loan out to volunteers. Give us a call at (828) 252-8474 ext. 112 or send us an email to volunteer@riverlink.org to schedule a time to come pick up some equipment.
Frequently Asked Questions
What sort of Activities Can volunteers Help With?
Most of our volunteer service activities are based around maintaining public lands and stormwater features. This includes invasive plant removal, trash cleanup on the land and in the water, and occasionally some planting or live staking. Every once and a while there will be opportunities to help with events or office work as well.
Do I need to have any experience to volunteer?
Not at all, there are plenty of opportunities to help out if you’re new to this sort of work. Our staff will make sure that you have all of the tools and knowledge you need to have a safe, fun, and impactful volunteer experience. The one exception to this rule is our river cleanups, we do require those volunteers to have some experience paddling a canoe.
What are the requirements to do a river cleanup?
We are very selective about who gets on the river for a trash cleanup since these can be fairly dangerous. We ask that all volunteers participating in a river cleanup have prior experience paddling a canoe, and be 15 or older. If groups don’t meet these requirements we can still do a walking stream cleanup which is equally impactful.
What should volunteers bring to service days?
Volunteers should come prepared with water, sunscreen, bug spray, and clothes and shoes that can get wet and dirty. RiverLink will provide all of the tools and safety equipment .
How many volunteers can RiverLink support?
The number of appropriate volunteers for each project varies, but in general we like to keep groups under 30. Our absolute maximum group size is 50 which we can split up to work on multiple different projects.
Can I get all my service hours with RiverLink?
Most likely not, we don’t always have the most consistent volunteer opportunities and don’t often have daily/weekly volunteer needs. We recommend using volunteer hours with us to supplement service you do with other organizations like food banks, animal shelters, homeless shelters, or other environmental groups.
Are there any other River groups that I can volunteer with?
Absolutely! Some of our favorite local partners do great work with volunteers and we highly recommend you check out their opportunities. These organizations include: Asheville GreenWorks, Mills River Partnership, and MountainTrue.