SOLVE IT

SOLVE IT, presented by Portland General Electric, is a celebration of Earth Day where volunteers dig in to take care of our parks, neighborhoods and waterways.

Thousands pitch in to take care of Oregon!

In celebration of Earth Day, approximately 6,096 SOLVE volunteers came out in force to make a difference in communities across the state as part of the 24^th annual SOLVE IT event presented by Portland General Electric.

Hundreds of volunteers turned out as part of a team including volunteer groups from Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, and Portland General Electric.

"PGE and its employees care about the communities where we live and work, that's why we've proudly supported SOLVE's volunteer efforts for over two decades," said Sunny Radcliffe, director of Government Affairs at Portland General Electric and current SOLVE board of directors member. Today, PGE employees, their friends and families, joined volunteers from across the state to dig in at the many SOLVE IT sites in celebration of Earth Day."

Canoe and kayakers floated 10 miles of the Molalla River collecting car parts, carpets, and 300 lbs. of scrap metal. In Northeast Portland, 239 volunteers showed up at Alberta Street removing 4,300 lbs. of trash! In Nyssa, 13 volunteers came together to cleanup their favorite park, removing 150 pounds of trash.

The Waldiz-Blue family volunteered with SOLVE for the first time this year at the Tualatin Community Park. They were very happy to see a project in their own community. When asked why they volunteered, the Waldiz-Blue children said, "Mom forced us to come, but when we got here we really liked it!" According to their parents, the hardest part about volunteering was waking up!

With SOLVE support, volunteers accomplished the following watershed improvements (23 projects will take place next week):

• Planted 3,368 native trees and shrubs in parks, on school grounds and in natural areas
• Removed 74,260 pounds of mixed waste from neighborhoods and natural areas
• Collected and recycled 259 tires
• Removed invasive non-native vegetation from approximately 39 acres of land