MountainTrue partners with NCDEQ to launch western North Carolina river debris cleanup program

MountainTrue, a nonprofit conservation organization serving western North Carolina, is partnering with the NC Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ) to launch a comprehensive River Debris Cleanup Program to address ongoing impacts from Tropical Storm Helene. The program will utilize $10 million in state funding granted through the North Carolina Office of State Budget and Management and sub-granted to NCDEQ to help with Helene recovery efforts.

The program is designed to supplement existing federal debris removal funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which is restricted to debris posing an immediate threat to public health and safety or tied to limited economic recovery efforts. While FEMA and United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) have prioritized major rivers and large debris, significant debris remains in smaller streams and tributaries—posing risks and threatening vital tourism and recreation industries throughout the region.

To close this gap, MountainTrue will deploy paid cleanup crews across western North Carolina for the next 18 months. Since Hurricane Helene, MountainTrue staff and volunteers have removed almost 3 million pounds of trash and debris throughout the hardest hit counties of Western North Carolina. MountainTrue will expand this work by cleaning over 150 miles of river throughout Western NC. The crews will collaborate with MountainTrue’s existing volunteer programs to navigate affected waterways, remove waste, stabilize stream banks and strengthen local community engagement. MountainTrue currently has established volunteer operations on the French Broad, Green, Broad and Watauga Rivers, with strong community partnerships already in place.

“We’re committed to helping western North Carolina recover and rebuild, and this investment will help clean up debris still left in our rivers,” said Reid Wilson, Secretary of the NC Department of Environmental Quality. “This initiative represents a critical opportunity to restore our waterways, protect our communities and support local economies dependent on outdoor recreation and tourism.”

“This is more than a cleanup—it’s a recovery effort that puts people back to work and brings communities together to restore the rivers we all depend on,” said Hartwell Carson, Clean Waters Director with MountainTrue. “We’ve already seen how much progress is possible when local crews and volunteers work side by side. With support from NCDEQ and the State of North Carolina, we’re scaling that success across the region to protect water quality, support outdoor recreation, and help western North Carolina bounce back stronger than before.”

Targeted counties include Alexander, Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Buncombe, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, Clay, Cleveland, Gaston, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Lincoln, Macon, Madison, McDowell, Mitchell, Polk, Rutherford, Transylvania, Watauga, Wilkes, Yancey and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.

MountainTrue will oversee all aspects of the program, including:

• Selection and prioritization of cleanup sites
• Crew safety training and supervision
• Volunteer coordination and community outreach
• Program monitoring and reporting
• Marketing and donor engagement

For more information about MountainTrue's River Debris Cleanup Program or to get involved, visit https://mountaintrue.org/cleanup-crew/.

For more information about the NC Department of Environmental Quality, visit www.deq.nc.gov.