Tread Lightly!, a U.S.-based nonprofit dedicated to promoting responsible motorized recreation through trail conservation and educational programs, announced the inaugural “Tread Lightly! Day WV” collaboration set for September 30, 2023, to help public lands across the state of West Virginia. Partners of this collaboration include Tread Lightly!, West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (WV DEP), West Virginia State Parks, BFGoodrich Tires, Rodney Loftis & Son Contracting, West Virginia State Senator Mark Maynard and the Country Roads Coalition.
“The WV DEP and West Virginia State Parks have been very supportive of our efforts to work on this project, and with help from Rodney Loftis & Son Construction, we know we’ll be able to get the dumping debris where it needs to be for proper disposal,” says Jerry Bain, Country Roads Coalition Project Lead. “With funding from BFGoodrich Tires as part of their Outstanding Trails Program and support from Tread Lightly!, the Country Roads Coalition will rally volunteers statewide to create a positive impact in places that need it critically.”
Tread Lightly! Day West Virginia will focus around 10 selected state parks and four high impact sites picked by the Rehabilitation Environmental Action Plan (REAP) initiative of the WV DEP.
Citizens of West Virginia are invited to commit to one aspect of Tread Lightly!’s T.R.E.A.D. Principles and take the “Do Your Part” pledge to make a big difference in small places on September 30. Organizers are asking outdoor, recreation enthusiasts to pack out one bag of trash while out on an outdoor adventure. An adventure project can be anything from a fishing day streamside cleanup, a 4×4 ride cleanup along a country road or a picnic and cleanup at a state park.
“The best part of this project is that it draws partners together from several different types of organizations,” says Scott Ammerman, Tread Lightly! Northeast Program Manager. “It includes two state agencies, a large, motorized recreation advocacy group, a statewide contractor, an international tire manufacturer and a national nonprofit. We are really going to give back to West Virginia public lands, with the help of hundreds of volunteers that already live there. Not bad at all for an idea hatched around a campfire!”
To learn more about Tread Lightly!’s mission and work, visit treadlightly.org.
