Bringing a river back from the dead

For many years the Elizabeth River, which flows into Chesapeake Bay on the American east coast, has been notoriously polluted. The industries that line its banks used it as a dump for their waste, and today pollution continues from stormwater runoff which carries with it waste from roads, gardens and industrial sites.

The Elizabeth River Project is an independent grassroots organisation which aims to make the river “swimmable and fishable” by 2020 through partnerships with government, business and the community. Besides trying to clean up the mistakes of the past, the project also works to ensure that the Elizabeth River does not suffer the same fate in the future.

Besides education programmes, the project is behind a clean-up of the river’s contaminated sediments, and encourages residents and businesses in the river’s watershed to play their part in reducing pollution.

Volvo Penta of the Americas, which is part of the Volvo Group and is based in Chesapeake, Virginia, is a a participating “River Star” in the Elizabeth River Project, meaning that the Volvo Penta facility has documented results of pollution prevention and wildlife habitat restoration.