Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council holds ‘Clean Days on the Greenway’ kickoff

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Walking and biking along the Woonasquatucket River is a wonderful experience, and thanks to the efforts of the Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council’s (WRWC) “Clean Days on the Greenway” kickoff event last Saturday, Johnston’s section of the trail looks even better.

Clean Days happen on the walkway throughout the active season, with about 1,300 volunteers turning out during that time to make sure that the bike path and the greenway are clean, safe and a place people want to be.

Over 150 volunteers turned out for Saturday’s kickoff to work on projects, which included planting flowers and shrubs; pruning trees; painting benches, signs and fences; weeding and mulching tree wells and plant beds; pulling tires from the river; and conducting “Knotweed Knock Downs” in which invasive species are removed to make room for native plants.

“We’re also rallying support to extend the greenway through Johnston,” said Alicia Lehrer, executive director of the WRWC. “We want to go all the way to the Smithfield line, into Smithfield would be our goal, but that’s much longer term, so for now we’re just trying to get all the way to Cricket Field, which is near the Smithfield border.”

The trail currently consists of seven miles of off-road and near-road trails, including “spurs” where one can take a side trail into surrounding neighborhoods. The projected expansion would add approximately three additional miles to the trail.

“We’d love to connect to the Blackstone trail in the future, also to the Burrillville path, which is on the same rail line,” Leher said. “We want to connect to everything.”

The WRWC acts as the official steward of the bike path. A non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, its mission focuses on works that encourage, support and promote the restoration and preservation of the watershed as an environmental, recreational, cultural, and economic asset.

“This is an urban wildlife corridor, regardless of surrounding industry,” said Lisa Aurecchia, director of projects at the council, who is overseeing the proposed multi-year expansion project. “We have deer, wild turkey, I see a red tailed hawk almost every time I’m out here. It’s just gorgeous.”

Volunteers celebrated the event with a carnival-like atmosphere that included music, refreshments, photo booths, matching T-shirts and tours from Sol Chariots Pedicab Cooperative, a company that provides local transportation and tours in chariot-style bicycles.

“There’s all this hype about this path and its possible expansion, so we wanted to come out and support it because we’re all about supporting bike culture, too,” said Ally Trull, a driver from Sol Chariot, who estimated she’d provide about 25 miles worth of free rides that day.

Funding for the WRWC comes from a federal earmark that is very old and it’s nearing its end, but organization leaders are optimistic about the future.

“We’ll do whatever it takes going forward to secure funding,” Lehrer said.

For more information on the WRWC, visit www.wrwc.org.

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