Missouri River Cleanup with Spire 2026
French Bottom River Access
Wednesday, June 24, 2026
Based out of French Bottom Access in St. Joseph, we teamed up with Spire and their employees as part of the Spire Serves program to cleanup the Missouri River. Teams headed up both upstream and downstream to tackle shoreline cleanup sites.
Everyone showed up with a great attitude and a willingness to dig deep, literally. Volunteers pulled embedded trash from muddy banks, uncovered long-forgotten debris, and didn’t stop until nearly 2,900 pounds of trash had been removed from eight miles of river. That included 75 bags of trash, three tires, barrels, tanks, coolers, a few soccer balls, carpets, and plenty of unexpected finds.
Through Spire Serves, Spire is committed to strengthening communities by addressing critical needs, expanding opportunities and investing in initiatives that help neighborhoods thrive.
Thank you to everyone from Spire who joined us on the river, to Hy-Vee for lunch, and to the City of St. Joseph, MO for providing the dumpster.
Spire volunteers teaming up to pull up a torn up fabric/tarp stuck in the muddy bank. Photo by Harry Katz.
Trash Tally
75 Bags Trash
2 tires with rims
1 large tractor tire
3 lick tubs
2 Big strap chuck
1 Boat weight
2 Big white tanks
2 Roofing board with shingles
3 Seed sacks
4 helium/propane
3 coolers
55-gallon Barrel
Half barrel
Big Sheet of plastic
Hole-y 2x4
2 bed frame parts
Roller cart
6 carpets
2 sheet metal
1 bucket
1 headless doll
Cleanup Results
Social Media
Media Coverage
-
St. Joseph News-Press - "Missouri River Relief partners with Spire Serves to clean up Missouri River"
Total Volunteers: 23
- Volunteers signed in: 21
- River Relief Crew: 2
- River Miles Cleaned: 8
- River Stage: 8.39-ft. @ St. Joseph gauge
- Landfill: 2625 pounds
- Tires: 270 pounds (3 tires - 2 tires on rim and 1 tractor tire)
Total Weight: 2895 pounds
A Big Muddy Thank You To Our Sponsors and Partners:
